JP5030809B2 - Airbag device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technical field of an airbag device for inflating and deploying to the outside of a vehicle by a gas from an inflator or the like in an emergency such as when the vehicle collides with a collision target, and to mitigate the impact on the collision target or the vehicle. It belongs to.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when a vehicle collides with a pedestrian or the like, an airbag is inflated to the outside of the pillar portion of the vehicle to reduce the impact of the pedestrian or the like recollising with the vehicle.

  For example, in a pillar airbag device that absorbs and reduces shock when a pedestrian collides with a front pillar of a vehicle body when a traveling vehicle collides with a pedestrian, the inflator is installed in the front pillar. An airbag device is disclosed (see Patent Document 1).

Moreover, in the pillar airbag apparatus, an airbag apparatus is disclosed in which inflators are installed in the hood ridges on the left and right sides of the engine room (see Patent Document 2).
JP-A-7-108903 JP 2006-76448 A Hiroko Tamida, 4 others, 2001 Research Institute for Traffic Safety and Environment, Research Presentation Paper “Study on Pedestrian Head Injuries” (Reference URL “HYPERLINK” http://www.ntsel.go.jp/ronbun /happyoukai/13files/hokousya.pdf "http://www.ntsel.go.jp/ronbun/happyoukai/13files/hokousya.pdf")

  However, in the airbag device described in Patent Document 1, since the inflator is installed in the front pillar, the structure of the front pillar is complicated, the strength is difficult to maintain, and the cost is high.

  Further, in the airbag device described in Patent Document 2, since the inflator is installed in the hood ridges on both the left and right sides of the engine room, the upper part of the inflator as a rigid body is subjected to a secondary collision only by the energy absorption effect of the hood. It is not possible to absorb and reduce the impact of Therefore, it is necessary to cover the top of the inflator with an air bag, which increases the size of the air bag and the inflator, resulting in high costs.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the object thereof is to appropriately pedestrians and the like by inflating in a stable state while being easy to assemble by a small airbag and inflator. And it is providing the airbag apparatus received softly.

The invention according to claim 1 is an air bag, an inflator that ejects gas into the air bag, a pipe that connects the air bag and the inflator, a detection unit that detects a collision, and a signal from the detection unit Control means for operating the inflator and a cover for storing the airbag, and an airbag device for inflating the airbag disposed along the front pillar outside the vehicle, wherein the cover includes the front The airbag mounted on the surface of the pillar facing the windshield and housed in the cover is at least partially disposed on the windshield in the housed state .

According to the airbag apparatus according to the present invention configured as described above, an airbag, an inflator that ejects gas into the airbag, a pipe that connects the airbag and the inflator, and a collision are detected. An air for inflating the airbag disposed along the front pillar on the outside of the vehicle, comprising: a detecting means; a control means for operating the inflator according to a signal from the detecting means; and a cover for storing the airbag. In the bag device, the cover is attached on a surface facing the windshield side of the front pillar, and at least a part of the airbag housed in the cover is disposed on the windshield in a folded state. So
The tool fastening direction by the operator is one direction, and the attaching work can be performed quickly and easily.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows an airbag 20 of the present embodiment. The airbag 20 of the present embodiment is formed by folding and sewing a single base fabric, and includes an inflating portion 20a, a pipe connecting portion 20b, a first locking portion 20c, and a second locking portion 20d. The inflating part 20a has a substantially elliptical shape, and is a part that alleviates an impact with a collision target such as a pedestrian during expansion. The pipe connection part 20b protrudes in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the expansion part 20a, and is a part where the pipe 16 is inserted and crimped. The first locking portion 20c is a portion that protrudes in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the inflating portion 20a in the vicinity of the pipe connection portion 20b, and locks the airbag 20 to the vehicle body. 20 d of 2nd latching | locking parts are parts provided in the one end side of the expansion | swelling part 20a of the airbag 20, and latch the airbag 20 to a vehicle body.

  Next, a state where the airbag device 10 including the airbag 20 is mounted on the vehicle 1 will be described.

  2 is a perspective view of a vehicle equipped with the airbag device of the present embodiment, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the front pillar of the vehicle of the present embodiment, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line aa in FIG. It is.

  In the figure, 1 is a vehicle, 2 is a front pillar, 3 is a fender, 4 is a hood, 5 is a roof, 6 is a windshield, 7 is a seal, 10 is an airbag device, 11 is a cover, 12 is a bag case, 14 is an anchor, 15 is an inflator, 16 is a pipe, and 20 is an airbag.

  The vehicle 1 has a front pillar 2 that connects a member (not shown) or an engine room frame and a roof 5. The windshield 6 is surrounded by the hood 4, the roof 5, and the front pillar 2 and is attached via a seal 7.

  An airbag device 10 is housed on the windshield 6 side of the front pillar 2 and the fender 3. The front pillar 2 has a first surface 2a facing the outside of the vehicle 1 and a second surface 2b facing the windshield side. The airbag 20 is folded on the second surface 2b side, and the bag case 12 is housed in the cover 11.

  The cover 11 is formed of a member having a substantially L-shaped cross section having an upper cover 11a and a first side cover 11b on the windshield 6 side, and covers the airbag 20 folded to the second surface 2b side of the front pillar 2. Are arranged as follows. Note that the folded airbag 20 may be stored directly in the cover 11 without being stored in the bag case 12.

  The cover 11 is provided with a first folded portion 11c on the windshield 6 side and a second folded portion 11d on the front pillar 2 side, and a cover scattering prevention member 17 such as a strap is inserted into the second folded portion 11d. The second folded portion 11d is squeezed in several places so as not to damage the design surface. As will be described later, one end 17 a of the cover scattering prevention member 17 is locked to the anchor 14, and the other end 17 b is locked to the vehicle body side such as the front pillar 2 root portion or member by the anchor 13 or the bag expansion direction regulating member 22. Is done.

  A seal 11e is attached in the vicinity of the second folded portion 11d of the upper cover 11a to cover the gap between the front pillar 2 and the cover 11 and enhance the design.

  Under the fender 3 or the hood 4, as will be described later, a long inflator 15 that generates gas for inflating the airbag 20, a pipe 16 that supplies the gas generated by the inflator 15 to the airbag 20, and the like are stored. Has been.

  It is preferable that at least the airbag 20, the inflator 15, and the pipe 16 are made into a module M. Further, the cover 11 may be added to form a module M.

  5 is a view showing the bag inflation direction regulating member 22, FIG. 6 is a view of a part of the front pillar 2 as viewed from the windshield 6, and FIG. 7 is a front view in which the cover 11, the airbag 20, and the fender 3 are omitted. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the pillar 2, and FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line bb of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the bag inflating direction regulating member 22 has a substantially L-shaped cross section, and includes a fixing portion 22 </ b> A made of a plate-like member and a concealing portion 22 </ b> B that conceals the gap between the fender 3 and the windshield 6. Become. The fixing portion 22A includes a vehicle body fixing portion 22a that is fixed to the vehicle 1 with a screw or the like, a bag fixing portion 22b that fixes the airbag 20, a side wall guide portion 22c that rises substantially perpendicular to the windshield 6, and a side wall guide portion 22c. An extension 22d extending substantially parallel to the upper cover 11a from the end is provided. Further, the side wall guide portion 22c is provided with a hooking portion 22e that is hooked in a locking hole 2a provided in the front pillar 2 shown in FIG. The concealing portion 22B has a communicating portion 22f that communicates with the fixing portion 22A with a smooth curved surface along the front pillar 2, and a curved portion 22g that is provided at the end opposite to the fixing portion 22A and through which the pipe 16 passes.

  7 and 8 show a state in which the bag expansion direction regulating member 22 is attached to the vehicle 1. The bag inflation direction regulating member 22 latches the latching portion 22e shown in FIG. 5 in the locking hole 2a of the front pillar 2 shown in FIG. 6 and fixes the vehicle body fixing portion 22a to the vehicle 1 with screws or the like. . At this time, the fixing portion 22A is firmly attached so as to be fitted along the front pillar 2. The concealing part 22B can conceal the gap between the fender 3 and the windshield 6 so that the airbag 20 does not sink under the fender 3, and the pipe 16 can be guided by the curved part 22g.

  Thus, after attaching the bag expansion direction regulating member 22 to the vehicle 1, the airbag device 10 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is fixed, and the cover 11 is closed as shown in FIG.

  FIG. 9 is a view of the inflator mounting portion of FIG. 7 as viewed from the side. In the present embodiment, the inflator 15 is attached to the inner side surface 8a of the front side member 8 as the vehicle body skeleton portion via the bracket 9 in the engine room.

  The attachment position is such that the distance L between the inflator and the hood, for example, the distance L between the back surface 4b of the hood 4 on the vertical line taken from the upper surface 4a of the hood 4 and the highest position of the inflator 15 is about 76 mm or more. In addition, Preferably, it shall be 80 mm or more.

  Here, the basis for setting the length to 76 mm or more will be described with reference to Non-Patent Document 1. FIG. 10 is a graph showing the relationship between the dynamic deformation amount and the head injury reference value. As shown in Non-Patent Document 1, there is a strong relationship between the dynamic deformation amount and the head injury reference value, and the head injury reference value decreases as the dynamic deformation amount increases. Since the head injury reference value 1000 is a threshold value for serious injury, considering the amount of dynamic deformation based on this value, it is considered that a deformation space of about 76 mm is necessary.

  In addition, when installing the inflator 15 in an engine room, the temperature in the inflator 15 rises by the radiant heat from an engine etc. Therefore, in order to suppress the action of radiant heat, a heat insulating material such as glass wool may be provided around the inflator 15.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a method of assembling the airbag 20 or the like to the vehicle. First, as shown in FIG. 11A, when the airbag 20 or the like is assembled, the engine is not mounted on the vehicle body, and the fender 3, the hood 4 and the windshield 6 are installed. The worker performs work in the engine room.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 11 (b), the operator passes a module M of the airbag 20, the inflator 15, the pipe 16, and the like between the hood 4 and the windshield 6.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 11C, the module M is arranged at a fixed position. After that, as shown in FIG. 11 (d), the inflator 15 is fixed to the front side member 8, the bag inflation direction regulating member 22 is fixed to the front pillar 2, and the first locking portion 20 c and the second locking portion 20 of the airbag 20 are fixed. Each of the locking portions 20d is fixed to the vehicle body, and finally the cover 11 is fixed to complete the assembly.

  Thus, the assembly can be easily performed by forming the airbag 20, the inflator 15, the pipe 16, and the like into the module M. In addition, since the mounting surface to the vehicle body is the windshield 6 side of the front pillar 2 and the inner side surface 8a of the front side member 8, the tool fastening direction by the operator is one direction, and the mounting operation is performed quickly and easily. be able to.

  Next, the operation of the airbag device 10 of the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the airbag device 10 according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of the airbag device 10 during operation.

  The airbag apparatus 10 in the storage state as shown in FIG. 3 is based on the detection signal when the vehicle 1 collides with a collision target (not shown) and an impact force generated on the vehicle 1 is detected by a detection means (not shown). Operated by control means or the like.

  FIG. 12A shows an initial stage of inflation when the airbag apparatus 10 starts operating, gas flows into the airbag 20 through the pipe 16 from the inflator 15 housed in the fender 3, and the airbag 20 begins to expand. ing. In the initial stage of inflation, the airbag 20 starts to inflate from the fender 3 side, and the cover 11 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is opened by the inflation pressure.

  At this time, as shown in FIG. 13, the airbag 20 is regulated in the inflation direction toward the vehicle center by the side wall guide portion 22 c and the extension portion 22 d of the bag inflation direction regulating member 22. As a result, the gap S between the cover 11 and the front pillar 2 is concealed, and the airbag 20 does not protrude from the gap S, and a stable operation can be performed.

  FIG. 12B shows a middle stage of inflation where gas flows from the inflator 15 through the pipe 16 into the airbag 20 and the airbag 20 continues to inflate. In the middle stage of inflation, the entire airbag 20 is completely exposed from the folded state.

  FIG. 12C shows an inflating completion stage in which the inflating of the airbag 20 is completed. In the inflation completion stage, the airbag 20 is completely inflated. The state of the airbag device 10 at the stage of completion of inflation will be described below.

  14 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the front pillar 2 at the stage of completion of inflation, FIG. 15 is a sectional view taken along line cc in FIG. 14, FIG. 16 is a sectional view taken along line dd in FIG. It is a perspective view of the front pillar 2 vicinity of the expansion completion stage which abbreviate | omitted.

  At the stage of completion of inflation, the airbag 20 is deployed in a direction along the front pillar 2 above a part of the fender 3 and the hood 4 and in front of the front pillar 2.

  As shown in FIG. 15, in the expansion completion stage, the cover 11 is separated from the front pillar 2 by the pressure during expansion.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 16, at the stage where inflation is completed, the airbag 20 is highly likely to collide with a collision target such as a pedestrian by the side wall guide portion 22 c and the extension portion 22 d of the bag inflation direction regulating member 22. The expansion direction is regulated in front of the pillar 2 and in the vehicle center direction.

  At this time, as shown in FIG. 17, since the cover 11 is locked to the vehicle body side by the cover scattering prevention member 17 via the anchors 13 and 14, the cover 11 is not scattered from the vehicle 1. The cover scattering prevention member 17 may be divided into a first cover scattering prevention member 17 a that connects the anchor 14 and the cover 11, and a second cover scattering prevention member 17 b that connects the anchor 13 and the cover 11.

  As described above, the cover 11 is separated from the vehicle 1 while being connected to the vehicle 1 via the cover scattering prevention member 17 when the airbag 20 is inflated. Breaking and scattering can be prevented.

  In this embodiment, the cover scattering prevention member 17 is locked to the anchors 13 and 14 that lock the airbag 20, but may be configured to be locked to the vehicle body via other members.

  FIG. 18 is a view showing a second embodiment of the bag inflation direction regulating member 22. As shown in FIG. 18, the bag inflating direction regulating member 22 is composed of a fixing member having a substantially L-shaped cross section, and is fixed to the vehicle 1 with a screw or the like, and a bag fixing portion 22 b for fixing the airbag 20. The side wall guide portion 22c rises substantially perpendicular to the windshield 6, and has an extension portion 22d extending substantially in parallel with the upper cover 11a from the end portion of the side wall guide portion 22c. Further, the side wall guide portion 22c is provided with a hooking portion 22e that is hooked in a locking hole 2a provided in the front pillar 2 shown in FIG.

  FIG. 19 is a view showing a third embodiment of the bag inflation direction regulating member 22. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 19 (a), a notch 22h is provided in the boundary portion between the side wall guide portion 22c and the extension portion 22d of the bag inflating direction regulating member 22, and the extension as shown in FIG. 19 (b). The portion 22d can be easily bent with respect to the side wall guide portion 22c. This structure can be applied not only to the bag inflation direction regulating member 22 of the first embodiment and the second embodiment but also to the bag inflation direction regulating member 22 of other structures.

  By adopting such a structure, at the initial stage of inflation, the airbag 20 is regulated in the direction of inflation of the airbag 20 toward the vehicle center, and the airbag 20 protrudes from the gap between the cover 11 and the front pillar 2. The airbag 20 is deployed in the direction along the front pillar 2 in front of the front pillar 2 at the stage of completion of inflation, and thus can be deployed over a wide range. .

  According to the airbag device 10 of the present embodiment configured as described above, the airbag 20, the inflator 15 that ejects gas into the airbag 20, the pipe 16 that connects the airbag 20 and the inflator 15, An airbag 20 that is provided along the front pillar 2 on the outside of the vehicle, including a detection unit that detects a collision, a control unit that activates an inflator according to a signal from the detection unit, and a cover 11 that houses the airbag 20. Since the inflator 15 is installed on the inner side surface 8a of the front side member 8 in the engine room of the vehicle, the airbag device 10 can be easily attached to the vehicle body and has a sufficient distance from the hood 4. Can open.

  Moreover, since the amount of dynamic movement of the upper part of the inflator 15 can be secured by setting the distance between the inflator 15 and the vehicle hood 4 to about 76 mm or more, the coverage area of the airbag 20 can be reduced.

  In addition, since at least the airbag 20, the inflator 15, and the pipe 16 are made into a module M, the operation of attaching the airbag device 10 to the vehicle body is further facilitated.

  Since the cover 11 is attached on the windshield 6 side of the front pillar 2, the tool fastening direction by the operator is one direction, and the attaching operation can be performed quickly and easily.

  According to the airbag device according to the present invention configured as described above, the airbag device can be easily attached to the vehicle body and can be sufficiently spaced from the hood. Moreover, since the amount of dynamic movement of the upper part of the inflator can be ensured, the coverage area of the airbag can be reduced. Furthermore, the tool fastening direction by the operator is one direction, and the attaching operation can be performed quickly and easily.

It is a figure which shows embodiment of the airbag concerning this invention. It is a perspective view of the vehicle carrying the airbag apparatus of this embodiment. It is a perspective view near the front pillar of the vehicle of the present embodiment. It is sectional drawing in the aa line of FIG. It is a figure which shows 1st Embodiment of the bag expansion direction control member. It is the figure which looked at a part of front pillar from the windshield side. It is a perspective view of the front pillar vicinity which abbreviate | omitted the cover, the airbag, and the fender. It is sectional drawing in the bb line of FIG. It is the figure which looked at the inflator of FIG. 7 from the side. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the amount of dynamic deformation and a head injury reference value. It is a figure which shows the assembly | attachment method to the vehicle of a module. It is a figure which shows the action | operation of the airbag apparatus of this embodiment. Sectional view at the time of operation of the airbag device 10 It is a perspective view of the vicinity of the front pillar at the stage of expansion completion. It is sectional drawing in the cc line of FIG. Sectional drawing in the dd line of FIG. It is an enlarged view near a through anchor. It is a figure which shows 2nd Embodiment of the bag expansion direction control member. It is a figure which shows 3rd Embodiment of the bag expansion direction control member.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle, 2 ... Front pillar, 3 ... Fender, 4 ... Hood, 5 ... Roof, 6 ... Wind shield, 7 ... Seal, 8 ... Front side member, 9 ... Bracket, 10 ... Air bag apparatus, 11 ... Cover, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 ... Bag case, 13, 14 ... Anchor, 15 ... Inflator, 16 ... Pipe, 17 ... Cover scattering prevention member, 20 ... Air bag, 22 ... Bag expansion direction control member

Claims (1)

An airbag, an inflator that ejects gas into the airbag, a pipe that connects the airbag and the inflator, a detection unit that detects a collision, and a control that operates the inflator based on a signal from the detection unit And an airbag device for inflating the airbag disposed along the front pillar on the outside of the vehicle.
The cover is attached with a surface facing the windshield side of the front pillar,
The airbag device according to claim 1, wherein at least a part of the airbag stored in the cover is disposed on the windshield in a stored state .

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