JP5244776B2 - Airbag device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an airbag device.

  As a vehicle occupant protection device, the airbag body is attached in a folded state along the upper edge of the vehicle side window, and the airbag body is turned into the side window by introducing gas into the airbag body at the time of a side collision. There is known a curtain airbag device that is deployed along and protects an occupant's head.

  In this type of curtain airbag device, a belt connecting the front portion of the airbag body and the front pillar of the vehicle body is stored in the front pillar, and the belt pulled out from the front pillar when the airbag body is deployed is used. Then, the front end of the airbag body is pulled to restrain the deployed airbag body at an appropriate position (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  Further, some curtain airbag devices are provided with a pulling device made of a cable or the like attached to the airbag main body so that the airbag main body at the time of deployment is disposed at an appropriate position (for example, see Patent Document 2). ).

JP 2003-291717 A JP-T-2006-517166

  However, in the case where the airbag main body and the front pillar are connected by the belt, the length of the belt does not change before and after the airbag main body is deployed. There is a problem in that the binding force of the belt to the airbag body later becomes weak.

  On the other hand, when a pulling device made of a cable or the like is attached to the airbag body, there are problems such as a complicated structure of the pulling device, an increase in the number of parts, and an increase in weight.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a vehicle airbag device that can restrain the deployed airbag body at an appropriate position with a simple structure.

The vehicle airbag apparatus according to the present invention employs the following means in order to solve the above problems.
The invention according to claim 1 includes an inflator that generates gas (for example, an inflator 12 in an embodiment to be described later) and a side part of a vehicle body (for example, a vehicle body 2 in an embodiment to be described later) in a folded state. airbag body (e.g., the air bag body 11 in the embodiment) to expand gas is introduced into the curtain shape and the position of the airbag body upon deployment of the air bag body mounted to the airbag body and the vehicle body A vehicle airbag device (e.g., a curtain airbag device 10 in an embodiment described later), which includes a tension generating section (e.g., a tether 20 and an auxiliary airbag 30 in an embodiment described later), tension generating unit is configured to position in the vehicle longitudinal direction of the end portion of the airbag body, the inflation Bag unit to reduce the gas is introduced length in the longitudinal direction from the chromatography data (e.g., a bag portion 23,40,42 in the embodiment) has a plurality of, all of the bag portion thereof is communicated with And the air bag body is restrained in the vehicle front-rear direction by inflating each bag portion by introducing gas from the inflator and shortening the length thereof. It is a bag device.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention , the tension generating portion is configured by a belt-like tether (for example, a tether 20 in an embodiment described later), and one end of the tether is a pillar of a vehicle body. (For example, it is connected to the lower part of the front pillar 7 in the Example mentioned later), and the other end is connected with the said airbag main body after expansion | deployment, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

According to a third aspect of the present invention , in the invention of the first aspect, the tension generating part is constituted by a sub airbag (for example, a sub airbag 30 in an embodiment described later), Prior to deployment, the airbag is folded and attached along the pillar of the vehicle body (for example, the front pillar 7 in the embodiment described later), and connects the pillar and the upper and lower portions of the airbag body when the airbag body is deployed. It develops in a triangular shape.

  According to the present invention, since the length of the tension generating portion can be changed before and after the airbag body is deployed, the tension is applied to the airbag body after deployment regardless of the form of the mounting portion of the vehicle body to which the tension generating portion is attached. It is possible to multiply.

1 is an external perspective view of a vehicle including a vehicle airbag device according to the present invention. It is a side view which shows the principal part of the airbag apparatus for vehicles before the expansion | deployment in Example 1. FIG. It is a top view of the tension generation part in the airbag apparatus for vehicles of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the length change of the tension generation part before and behind the expansion | deployment of Example 1. FIG. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side view showing a main part of a vehicle airbag device after deployment in Example 1; It is a side view which shows the principal part of the airbag apparatus for vehicles after the expansion | deployment in Example 2. FIG. It is an example of the expanded view before folding of the airbag main body and tension generation part in the airbag apparatus for vehicles of Example 2. FIG. FIG. 10 is another example of the development before folding of the airbag main body and the tension generating portion in the vehicle airbag device of the second embodiment.

  DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of a vehicle airbag device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings of FIGS. In addition, the Example demonstrated below is an aspect of the curtain airbag apparatus provided along the upper edge of the opening part of a vehicle body.

<Example 1>
First, a first embodiment of a vehicle airbag device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings of FIGS.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vehicle 1 as viewed obliquely from the left front. The vehicle 1 includes an upper edge of a door opening that is opened and closed by a front door 4 and a rear door 5 on both sides of a roof 3 of the vehicle body 2. A pair of left and right roof side rails 6 are provided so as to extend in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and the front ends of these roof side rails 6 are connected to the left and right front pillars 7. In this vehicle 1, the rising angle of the front pillar 7 is extremely large.

  A curtain airbag device 10 is provided on the vehicle interior side of the roof side rail 6 and the front pillar 7. For convenience of illustration, FIG. 1 only shows the curtain airbag device 10 arranged along the roof side rail 6 on the left side of the vehicle body 2.

  Hereinafter, the curtain airbag device 10 will be described in detail. The curtain airbag device 10 includes an airbag main body 11, an inflator 12, and a tether 20 as a tension generating unit.

  The airbag main body 11 is folded in the shape of a long bar, and is disposed along the roof side rail 6 on the vehicle interior side of the roof side rail 6. When deployed, as shown in FIG. Along the window 4a and the window 5a of the rear door 5, it is mounted in the vehicle compartment so as to be deployed in a curtain shape. The upper end of the airbag main body 11 is fixed along the roof side rail 6 so that the upper end of the airbag main body 11 is not detached from the roof side rail 6 even when deployed.

  The inflator 12 is provided at the rear portion of the airbag body 11 in the vehicle front-rear direction and is connected to the rear end of the airbag body 11. The inflator 12 generates gas, introduces the gas into the airbag body 11, and inflates and deploys the airbag body 11.

The tether 20 restrains the position of the airbag body 11 after deployment, and is arranged along the front pillar 7 on the vehicle interior side of the front pillar 7.
The tether 20 has a bag-like shape, is formed of the same material as the airbag main body 11, has confidentiality, and is configured to be inflated by introducing gas and to be shortened in length. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the tether 20 before the gas is introduced. The tether 20 is formed into a single bag band shape by, for example, folding one base cloth 21 in two and stitching the periphery. Yes, at every predetermined interval in the longitudinal direction (arrow L), a joint portion 22 is provided from both ends in the width direction (arrow W) toward the center in the width direction, and the base fabric 21 on the front and back sides is provided by the joint portion 22. The inside of the tether 20 is partitioned into a plurality of bag portions 23 arranged in series in the longitudinal direction. The joining portion 22 may be formed by stitching the front and back base fabrics 21 or may be formed by joining with an adhesive or the like. Further, a non-joining portion 24 is formed between the joining portions 22 extending from both sides in the width direction, and the adjacent bag portions 23 communicate with each other and function as a gas passage.

  One end 25 in the longitudinal direction of the tether 20 is fixed to the lower portion of the front pillar 7, and the other end 26 is connected to the lower front end of the airbag body 11 after deployment as shown in FIG. 5. The other end 26 is connected to the airbag body 11 so as to allow gas flow. Note that the tether 20 and the airbag body 11 can be integrally formed of the same base cloth.

Here, the principle of the length change of the tether 20 will be described. FIG. 4 schematically shows a cross-section of the tether 20 along FIG. 3A-A. The upper side shows a state before gas is introduced into the tether 20 (hereinafter referred to as “before deployment”), and the lower side shows It is shown in a state after the gas is introduced (hereinafter referred to as after deployment). In the tether 20 before unfolding, the front and back base fabrics 21 approach each other and overlap each other, and each bag portion 23 has a flat shape. On the other hand, after deployment, each bag portion 23 expands due to the introduction of gas, and the base fabrics 21 on the front and back sides are curved and separated from each other in each bag portion 23, so that the total length of the tether 20 is reduced compared to before deployment. It is.
As shown in FIG. 2, the tether 20 is arranged along the front pillar 7 in the form before deployment and in a straight line shape with little slack in the longitudinal direction.

  According to the curtain airbag device 10 configured as described above, when the gas generated in the inflator 12 is introduced into the airbag body 11, the airbag body 11 is inflated, and as shown in FIG. The window 4a and the window 5a of the rear door 5 are deployed in a curtain shape in the vehicle interior.

  Simultaneously with the deployment of the airbag body 11, the gas is introduced into the tether 20 from the other end 26 of the tether 20 through the airbag body 11. As a result, the tether 20 is inflated, and the other end 26 side is pulled out from the front pillar 7 into the vehicle interior as the airbag main body 11 is deployed while shortening the overall length as described above, and finally the airbag main body 11. After deployment, as shown in FIG. 5, the vehicle extends substantially horizontally along the vehicle longitudinal direction. That is, since the lower front end of the airbag body 11 after deployment is connected to the lower portion of the front pillar 7 by the tether 20 having a reduced length, the airbag body 11 cannot move further rearward. .

Compared with the case where a tether whose length is not shortened before and after deployment is used, the airbag body 11 after deployment can be restrained closer to the front of the vehicle by the dimension of the length of the tether 20 after deployment. It becomes.
Therefore, according to the curtain airbag device 10 of the first embodiment, even if the vehicle 1 has a large rising angle of the front pillar 7, the airbag body 11 after deployment can be restrained at an appropriate position.

<Example 2>
Next, Embodiment 2 of the vehicle airbag device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings of FIGS.
In the curtain airbag device 10 of the first embodiment, the tension generating portion that restrains the position of the airbag body 11 after deployment is configured by the bag belt-shaped tether 20, but in the curtain airbag device 10 of the second embodiment, The tension generating part is constituted by the auxiliary airbag 30. Since the other configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment, only the auxiliary airbag 30 will be described below.

FIG. 7 is a development view of the auxiliary airbag 30 before being attached to the vehicle 1, and FIG. 6 is a view corresponding to FIG. 5 in the first embodiment, and the deployment of the curtain airbag device 10 attached to the vehicle 1. The later state is shown.
As shown in FIG. 7, the secondary airbag 30 is integrally formed with the same base fabric as the airbag body 11, and the front side of the vehicle is the secondary side with a joint portion 31 formed by joining the front and back base fabrics as a boundary. The airbag 30 and the vehicle rear side are partitioned into an airbag body 11.

The joining portion 31 extends linearly from the lower side 32 of the auxiliary airbag 30 to the front side of the upper side 33, and a non-joining portion 34 is formed between the tip of the joining portion 31 and the upper side 33 of the auxiliary airbag 30. Yes. The inside of the airbag main body 11 and the inside of the sub-airbag 30 are communicated with each other by the non-joining portion 34 so that gas can flow.
The lower side 32 and the upper side 33 of the auxiliary airbag 30 are set to have the same size, and the lower side 32 overlaps the upper side 33 when folded.

  Moreover, the inside of the sub-airbag 30 is partitioned into a plurality of bag portions by a plurality of joint portions formed by joining the front and back base fabrics. More specifically, the auxiliary airbag 30 includes a plurality of first joint portions 35 that linearly extend from the upper side 33 to the front of the lower side 32 and a plurality of first joints 35 that extend to the front of the upper side 33 from the lower side 32. The 2nd junction part 36 is arrange | positioned alternately. In addition, the 1st junction part 35 is arrange | positioned next to the above-mentioned junction part 31. FIG. And between the junction part 31 and the 1st junction part 35 adjacent to it, and between the adjacent 1st junction part 35 and the 2nd junction part 36 are the bag parts 40, respectively.

  A non-joining portion 37 is formed between the tip of the first joint portion 35 and the lower side 32, and a non-joint portion 38 is formed between the tip of the second joint portion 36 and the upper side 33. The joining portions 37 and 38 communicate with the adjacent bag portions 40 and function as gas passages.

The distance L1 between the start ends 35a of the adjacent first joint portions 35 is the distance L2 between the start end 31a of the joint portion 31 and the start end 36a of the adjacent second joint portion 36, and the start end 36a of the adjacent second joint portion 36. It is set smaller than the interval L2. That is, the distance between the adjacent first joint portion 35 and the second joint portion 36 (width of the bag portion 40) increases as the lower side 32 is approached.
The joint portions 31, 35, 36 may be formed by stitching the front and back base fabrics, or may be formed by joining with an adhesive or the like.

  The auxiliary airbag 30 has a lower end 33 a of the upper side 33 fixed to the lower portion of the front pillar 7, and the entire length of the upper side 33 is fixed along the front pillar 7 and is folded together with the airbag main body 11. Is arranged along the front pillar 7 on the vehicle interior side of the front pillar 7 as in the case of the first embodiment. That is, also in the case of Example 2, the attachment state to the vehicle 1 is the same as that of FIG.

  In the auxiliary airbag 30 configured as described above, when the gas generated in the inflator 12 is introduced into the airbag body 11, the airbag body 11 is inflated, and as shown in FIG. 6, the window 4a of the front door 4 is expanded. And it expand | deploys in the vehicle interior along the window 5a of the rear door 5 in the shape of a curtain.

  Simultaneously with the development of the airbag main body 11, the gas introduced into the airbag main body 11 is introduced into the bag portion 40 adjacent to the joint portion 31 via the non-joint portion 34, and the non-joint portions 37 and 38 are successively inserted. The gas is introduced into all the bag portions 40 through and the auxiliary airbag 30 is inflated. At this time, as in the case of the first embodiment, the expansion of the bag portion 40 shortens the length on the lower side 32 side of the auxiliary airbag 30. That is, the length of the upper side 33 is fixed along the front pillar 7, so that the length does not change. Shorten. In particular, since the width of the bag portion 40 increases as it approaches the lower side 32, the shortened width increases as it approaches the lower side 32.

As a result, after the airbag body 11 is finally deployed, as shown in FIG. 6, the lower side 32 of the auxiliary airbag 30 is shortened in length and extends substantially horizontally along the vehicle longitudinal direction. The auxiliary airbag 30 is deployed in a triangular shape connecting the front pillar 7 and the upper and lower portions of the airbag body 11.
That is, since the front end of the airbag body 11 after deployment is connected to the front pillar 7 by the sub airbag 30 whose length is shortened, the airbag body 11 can no longer move rearward.

Therefore, in the case of the curtain airbag device 10 according to the second embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the airbag main body 11 after deployment is restrained toward the front of the vehicle by the dimension in which the length of the auxiliary airbag 30 is shortened. be able to.
According to the curtain airbag device 10 of the second embodiment, the deployed airbag body 11 can be restrained at an appropriate position even in the vehicle 1 where the rising angle of the front pillar 7 is large.

FIG. 8 shows another form of the bag portion in the auxiliary airbag 30. In this embodiment, a plurality of joint portions 41 are formed radially starting from the upper end 33b of the upper side 33 of the sub airbag 30 and the adjacent joint portions 41 are defined as bag portions 42. Further, the joining portion 41 is terminated before the lower side 32, and the non-joining portion 43 is formed between the tip of the joining portion 41 and the lower side 32, and the non-joining portion 43 communicates with the airbag body 11 and the bag portion 42. Gas passages that communicate with each other and the adjacent bag portions 42.
Even in such a configuration, the length of the auxiliary airbag 30 can be shortened after deployment, as in the case of the second embodiment described above.

[Other Examples]
The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above.
For example, in the first embodiment described above, the tether 20 is connected to the lower portion of the front end of the airbag body 11. However, as long as the effect of restraining the position of the airbag body 11 is obtained, the tether 20 is connected to other parts of the airbag body 11. May be.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vehicle 2 Car body 7 Front pillar 10 Curtain airbag device (vehicle airbag device)
11 Airbag body 12 Inflator 20 Tether (tension generating part)
23 Bag part 30 Deputy airbag (tension generating part)
40, 42 bags

Claims (3)

An inflator that generates gas;
An air bag body to expand the gas is introduced Curtain shape from the inflator is attached to the vehicle body side in a folded state,
A tension generator attached to the airbag body and the vehicle body to restrain the position of the airbag body when the airbag body is deployed;
A vehicle airbag device comprising:
The tension generator is
The airbag main body has a plurality of bag portions that are positioned at the vehicle front-rear direction end portions and that are introduced with gas from the inflator to shorten the length in the longitudinal direction , and all the bag portions communicate with each other. And the air bag body is restrained in the vehicle front-rear direction by inflating each bag portion and reducing its length by introducing the gas from the inflator. Bag device. The tension generating portion is constituted by band-shaped tether, claims one end of the tether is connected to the lower portion of the vehicle body of the pillar and the other end is characterized in that it is connected to the air bag body after deployment vehicular airbag device according to 1. The tension generating portion is constituted by a sub airbag, and the sub airbag is attached along the pillar of the vehicle body in a folded state before deployment, and the pillar and the airbag are deployed when the airbag body is deployed. The vehicle airbag device according to claim 1, wherein the airbag device is deployed in a triangular shape connecting an upper portion and a lower portion of the main body.

Images