JP5949440B2 - Crew protection device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an occupant protection device.

  A side airbag device having a shoulder restraint portion that inflates and deploys to restrain a seated occupant's shoulder at the time of a side collision and an arm support edge on which an upper arm portion is placed at a position lower than the side of the seated occupant on the front side of the vehicle is known. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-132072

  By the way, when the seated occupant of the vehicle seat is positioned so as to overlap with the pillar in a side view, there is a concern that the load acting on the seated occupant during a side collision increases.

  It is an object of the present invention to obtain an occupant protection device that can suppress a load acting on a seated occupant during a side collision.

The occupant protection device according to the first aspect is a seat drive that moves the seat back together with a seat cushion or alone in front of a vehicle when a side collision is predicted in a state where the seated occupant is positioned so as to overlap the pillar at least in a side view. Means.

  In this occupant protection device, when a side collision is predicted in a state where the seated occupant is positioned so as to overlap the pillar, the seat driving means moves the seat back alone or together with the seat cushion to the front of the vehicle. For example, the seat back is moved forward by moving the seat cushion connected to the seat back or raising the seat back with respect to the seat cushion. As a result, the amount of overlap (lap) between the seated occupant and the pillar in a side view is reduced or eliminated, and the seated occupant has a relatively low-strength portion in front of the vehicle with respect to the pillar that is the vehicle body skeleton before the side collision. It will be located inside.

Thus, in the occupant protection device according to the first aspect , the load acting on the occupant in the case of a side collision is compared with the configuration in which the seat back is not moved forward from the state in which the seat occupant is overlapped with the pillar. It can be kept low.

The occupant protection device according to a second aspect is the occupant protection device according to the first aspect , in which the seat driving means is configured such that when a side collision is predicted in a state where the seated occupant overlaps with the pillar at least in a side view, The seat back is moved forward of the vehicle by moving the seat cushion forward of the vehicle using an adjusting device for adjusting the position electrically.

  In this occupant protection device, an adjustment device for adjusting the front and rear position of the seat cushion is operated when a side collision is predicted in a state where the seated occupant is positioned so as to overlap the pillar, so that the seat cushion is moved forward of the vehicle. Moved. As a result, the amount of overlap between the seated occupant and the pillar in the side view is reduced or eliminated without using a dedicated device for moving the seat cushion or the seat back to the front of the vehicle. The load acting on the seated occupant can be kept low.

The occupant protection device according to a third aspect is the occupant protection device according to the second aspect , wherein the seat driving means is configured to use the plurality of electric motors when a side collision is predicted at least in a state where the seated occupant is positioned so as to overlap the pillar. The seat cushion is configured to move forward of the vehicle.

  In this occupant protection device, when a side collision is predicted in a state where the seated occupant is positioned so as to overlap the pillar, the seat cushion can be moved forward in a short time using a plurality of motors.

The occupant protection device according to a fourth aspect is provided in the seat back according to any one of the first to third aspects, and is inflated and deployed on the outer side in the vehicle width direction with respect to the seated occupant upon receiving gas supply at the time of a side collision. The airbag is further provided.

  In this occupant protection device, when a side collision occurs, the airbag is inflated and deployed toward the side of the seated occupant from the seat back moved forward of the vehicle by the seat driving means. Accordingly, the seated occupant receives a load from a relatively low strength portion in front of the vehicle with respect to the pillar indirectly through the airbag, or a reaction force is supported. That is, even in the configuration including the side airbag, the seat back acts on the seat occupant in a side collision as compared with the configuration in which the seat back is not moved forward from the state where the seat occupant overlaps the pillar. The load can be kept low.

The occupant protection device according to a fifth aspect is the occupant protection device according to the fourth aspect , wherein the airbag includes a front chamber and a rear chamber that is inflated and deployed at an internal pressure higher than the internal pressure of the front chamber on the vehicle rear side with respect to the front chamber. It is configured.

  In this passenger protection device, the inner pressure of the rear chamber of the airbag is higher than that of the front chamber. Prior to the inflation and deployment of the side airbag, the amount of overlap between the seated occupant and the pillar in a side view is reduced or eliminated by the seat driving means. For this reason, it is possible to effectively limit the movement of the seated occupant to the outside in the vehicle width direction in the rear chamber having a relatively high internal pressure while keeping the load acting on the seated occupant low.

An occupant protection device according to a sixth aspect, in any one of the first to fifth aspects, a wall portion along a vehicle width direction that constitutes a rear end portion of a door trim of a side door located in front of the pillar in the vehicle, The pillar garnish that covers the pillar from the inside of the vehicle is provided on at least one of the wall portions along the vehicle width direction that constitutes the front end portion, and is lower in strength than the other portions with respect to the load from the inside in the vehicle width direction. In addition, a low strength part is further provided.

  In this occupant protection device, when an outward load acts on the door trim and pillar garnish from the occupant due to inertia of a side collision, the wall portion of at least one of the door trim and pillar garnish starts from the low strength portion due to the load. As deformation, breakage, etc. Thereby, compared with the structure in which the low-strength part is not provided in both the door trim and the garnish, it is possible to ensure a large effective stroke for absorbing the impact of the seated occupant during the side collision.

  As described above, the occupant protection device according to the present invention has an excellent effect that the load acting on the seated occupant during a side collision can be kept low.

1 is a side view schematically showing a schematic overall configuration of an occupant protection device according to an embodiment. 1 is a plan view schematically showing a vehicle interior of a vehicle to which an occupant protection device according to an embodiment is applied. It is an expanded sectional view expanding and showing a side air bag which constitutes a crew member protection device concerning an embodiment. It is a top view showing typically a seat slide mechanism which constitutes a crew member protection device concerning an embodiment. It is sectional drawing expanded along the 5-5 line of FIG.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, arrow FR, arrow UP, and arrow OUT that are appropriately described in each figure respectively indicate the front direction, the upward direction, and the vehicle width direction outside of the automobile A to which the occupant protection device 10 is applied. Hereinafter, when the description is made simply using the front-rear direction and the up-down direction, the front-rear direction of the vehicle and the up-down direction of the vehicle are indicated unless otherwise specified.

[General configuration of automobile]
FIG. 1 is a side view of a part of an automobile to which the occupant protection device 10 is applied as viewed from the vehicle interior side. As shown in this figure, the automobile A includes a vehicle seat 11. The occupant protection device 10 according to the present embodiment is mainly applied to the vehicle seat 11 and is configured to protect the seated occupant P of the vehicle seat 11 against a side collision of the automobile A. Further, the vehicle seat 11 in the present embodiment is a front seat (driver seat or passenger seat), and is configured by connecting the lower end of the seat back 14 to the rear end of the seat cushion 12. The seat back 14 can be adjusted in inclination angle with respect to the seat back via a recliner (not shown). A headrest 16 is provided at the upper end of the seat back 14.

  In the automobile A, a seated occupant P gets on and off through a door opening 18 formed on the outer side of the vehicle seat 11 in the vehicle width direction. The door opening 18 is divided into front and rear by a center pillar 20 as a pillar which is a vehicle body skeleton member. In other words, a front door access door opening 18F and a rear seat access door opening 18R are formed (arranged) before and after the center pillar 20, respectively. The door opening 18 is opened and closed by a side door 21 shown in FIG.

  The front and rear positions of the vehicle seat 11 can be adjusted by a seat slide mechanism 22 as an adjusting device shown in FIG. The seat slide mechanism 22 constitutes a part of the seat driving means of the present invention, and this will be described later together with the detailed structure of the seat slide mechanism 22. A height adjuster 24 for adjusting the seat cushion height of the seat cushion is interposed between the vehicle seat 11 and the seat slide mechanism 22. The height adjuster 24 is mainly composed of a pair of front and rear parallel links 24A that connect the vehicle seat 11 and the seat slide mechanism 22, and the height of the seat surface is increased by a driving force from a driving source or an operating force transmitting means (not shown). It comes to adjust.

[Configuration of passenger protection device]
The occupant protection device 10 includes a side airbag device 30 that restricts the movement of the seated occupant P toward the outside in the vehicle width direction (restrains the seated occupant P) in a side collision. In addition, the occupant protection device 10 includes a seat advance mechanism 32 as a seat drive unit that can drive the vehicle seat 11 forward of the vehicle when a side collision is predicted. This will be specifically described below.

(Side airbag device)
The side airbag device 30 includes a side airbag 34 as an airbag provided on the side of the seat back 14 on the outer side in the vehicle width direction, and an inflator 36 that operates to generate gas supplied into the side airbag 34. And the main part. Components (parts) such as the airbag 34 and the inflator 36 are modularized and stored in the side portion of the seat back 14 (see the broken line in FIG. 1).

  When the inflator 36 is actuated, the side airbag 34 receives gas supply from the inflator 36 and moves forward from the vehicle width direction outer end portion of the seat back 14 as indicated by an imaginary line in FIGS. 1 and 2. It is designed to be inflated and deployed. The inflated and deployed side airbag 34 restricts the movement of the seated occupant P to the outside in the vehicle width direction.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the side airbag 34 is divided into a front and rear two-chamber type airbag having a front chamber 34F and a rear chamber 34R by partitioning the inside and the front and rear. In this embodiment, the inside of the side airbag 34 is partitioned into front and rear chambers 34F and 34R by a tether 38. The tether 38 has a peripheral edge joined to the inner surface of the side airbag 34 by sewing or the like. The configuration for making the side airbag 34 a front and rear two-chamber type is not limited, and the side airbag 34 can be a front and rear two-chamber type with various structures.

  The side airbag 34 is supplied with gas from the inflator 36 in the rear end side in the deployed state, that is, in the rear chamber 34R. For this reason, the tether 38 is formed with an opening 38A through which gas flows from the rear chamber 34R to the front chamber 34F. In this embodiment, a plurality (two in the illustrated example) of openings 38A are formed side by side in the vertical direction.

  The side airbag 34 is configured such that gas flows from the rear chamber 34R into the front chamber 34F through the opening 38A as described above, so that the internal pressure of the rear chamber 34R becomes higher than the internal pressure of the front chamber 34F. It is configured. Specifically, a configuration in which the internal pressure of the rear chamber 34R is higher than the internal pressure of the front chamber 34F due to the pressure loss of the gas passing through the opening 38A at least during the period when the gas is supplied from the inflator 36. It is.

  Further, in this embodiment, the upper portion of the tether 38 is in a forward inclined posture when the side airbag 34 is inflated and deployed. As a result, as described above, the upper portion of the rear chamber 34R having a relatively high internal pressure is inflated and deployed so as to protrude forward relative to the lower portion, and the shoulder center Sc of the seated occupant P is in contact with the rear chamber 34R. It has become.

  The inflator 36 is controlled by a side collision ECU 40, which will be described later, and is activated when a side collision (inevitable) is detected.

(Seat advance mechanism)
The seat advancing mechanism 32 uses the above-described seat slide mechanism 22 as a mechanical main component. The seat slide mechanism 22 includes a pair of left and right seat rails 42 that slidably support the vehicle seat 11 forward and backward with respect to the floor F of the automobile A. Each seat rail 42 includes a rail outer 42A fixed to the floor F, and a rail inner 42B provided to be slidable back and forth with respect to the rail outer 42A. The rail inner 42B is connected to the seat cushion 12 of the vehicle seat 11 via the height adjuster 24 described above.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the seat slide mechanism 22 includes a drive unit 44 that electrically drives the rail inner 42B, that is, the vehicle seat 11, back and forth with respect to the rail outer 42A. The drive unit 44 includes an electric motor 46 that is a drive source, and a gear mechanism 48 that converts the driving force (torque) of the electric motor 46 into the longitudinal movement (force) of the rail inner 42B. In this embodiment, the electric motor 46 is disposed so that the main body 46B is fixed to the seat cushion frame by a bracket (not shown) and the rotation shaft 46A is along the front-rear direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the gear mechanism 48 includes a pinion 48A that rotates integrally with the rotating shaft 46A of the electric motor 46, an intermediate gear 48B whose axial direction is along the vehicle width direction, and each rail inner 42B. And a pair of driven gears 48C supported rotatably. The pinion 48A and the intermediate gear 48B are meshed with each other and constitute a staggered shaft gear pair that converts rotation about the axis along the front-rear direction to rotation about the axis along the vehicle width direction. The intermediate gear 48B is supported by the seat cushion frame via a bearing (not shown) so as to be rotatable around its own axis and not displaced in the thrust (vehicle width) direction.

  Each driven gear 48C is supported so that it can rotate about its own axis with respect to the rail inner 42B and cannot be displaced in the front-rear direction relative to the rail inner 42B in a state where the axial direction is along the front-rear direction. Each driven gear 48C is screwed with a nut member (not shown) fixed to the rail outer 42A, and meshed with the intermediate gear 48B. As a result, when each driven gear 48C rotates about its own axis by the rotational force received from the intermediate gear 48B, the reaction force from the nut member causes the rail inner 42B, that is, the seat cushion 12 and the seat back 14 to move forward and backward with respect to the rail outer 42A. It is designed to slide. For example, the vehicle seat 11 moves forward by the forward rotation of the electric motor 46, and the vehicle seat 11 moves backward by the reverse rotation of the electric motor 46.

  The gear mechanism 48 described above can be driven from the electric motor 46 side, and has a self-locking structure that cannot be driven from the vehicle seat 11 by setting the lead angle of each gear. Thereby, even when a load in the front-rear direction acts on the vehicle seat 11, the front-rear position of the vehicle seat 11 is maintained.

  In this embodiment, the seat slide mechanism 22 constituting the seat advancing mechanism 32 includes two electric motors 46. These two electric motors 46 have the same rating, and pinions 48A meshed with the intermediate gear 48B at different positions in the vehicle width direction are attached to the rotating shaft 46A.

  Here, each electric motor 46 has a configuration (rating) that can independently generate a driving force required to perform the function of adjusting the front-rear position as the seat slide mechanism 22 in a normal state. In this embodiment, by providing two electric motors 46, the vehicle seat 11 is driven at a higher speed than usual (moving to a target position in a short time) as compared with a configuration including a single electric motor 46. To be able to).

  These two electric motors 46 are normally rotated in response to an operation signal from an adjustment knob or the like of the seated occupant P. Each electric motor 46 is forcibly positively rotated by the side collision ECU 40 when a side collision is predicted in a state where the seated occupant P of the vehicle seat 11 overlaps the center pillar 20 in a side view. It is like that. Hereinafter, “overlap” between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20 may be referred to as “lap”.

  The side collision ECU 40 will be described in detail with respect to the above control. The side collision ECU 40 detects a side collision to the automobile A (inevitable), a side collision sensor 50 that predicts a side collision to the automobile A (pre-crash sensor). ) 52 is electrically connected to each of them. In addition, occupant information, which will be described later, is input to the side collision ECU 40.

  The side collision sensor 50 is configured using, for example, an acceleration sensor, and is configured to output a detection signal when a side collision occurrence or a side collision occurrence side (driver's seat side or passenger seat side) is detected. The side collision prediction sensor 52 is configured using, for example, a millimeter wave radar or the like, and is configured to output a prediction signal including side collision information before a side collision (which may be avoided) may occur. . The occupant information input to the side collision ECU 40 includes occupant seating presence / absence information of the vehicle seat 11 and front / rear position information of the seated occupant P.

  As for the presence / absence information on the occupant seating of the vehicle seat 11, the presence of seating is estimated except when the vehicle is parked (when the ignition switch or the system start switch is ON). For the passenger seat, for example, a signal from a buckle switch that detects whether or not the buckle of the seat belt device is worn, a seating sensor provided on the seat cushion 12, and the like. When a wearing signal from a buckle switch, a seating presence signal from a seating sensor, or the like is input, it is estimated that a passenger is seated.

  The front / rear position information of the seated occupant P indicates whether the seated occupant P of the vehicle seat 11 is wrapped on the center pillar 20 in a side view (hereinafter simply referred to as “presence / absence of lap between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20”). Information). The presence / absence of the lap between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20 may be directly detected by, for example, an occupant sensor provided on the vehicle body, and for example, from the front and rear positions of the rail inner 42B and the vehicle seat 11 with respect to the rail outer 42A. It may be estimated. In order to detect the latter position, a position (distance) sensor may be provided on the seat rail 42, a rotational position sensor may be provided on the electric motor 46, and the number of drive pulses is determined by using the electric motor 46 as a stepping motor or the like. The position may be converted from Furthermore, in order to estimate the lap between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20, in addition to the front-rear position information of the seat cushion 12, information on the reclining angle of the seat back 14 with respect to the seat cushion 12 may be used.

  The side collision ECU 40 controls the operation of the inflator 36 and each electric motor 46 based on the prediction signal from the side collision prediction sensor 52, the detection signal from the side collision sensor 50, and occupant information. . Although description is omitted, the side collision ECU 40 is configured to control the operations of the inflators 36 and the electric motors 46 in a plurality of seats (for example, a driver seat and a passenger seat) in an integrated manner.

  More specifically, the EUC 40 corrects the two electric motors 46 when receiving a prediction signal from the side collision prediction sensor 52 in a state where the seated occupant P is wrapped (estimated) on the center pillar 20. It is designed to rotate. Further, the EUC 40 stops the two electric motors 46 when the state where the seated occupant P is wrapped on the center pillar 20 is eliminated (it is estimated). As a stop condition of the electric motor 46, for example, in a configuration using an occupant sensor, the occupant is not detected by the sensor. Further, for example, in a configuration using position information such as the rail inner 42B with respect to the rail outer 42A, the rail inner 42B reaches the front and rear positions where the lap between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20 is eliminated.

  Further, when the EUC 40 determines that a side collision has occurred on the vehicle seat 11 side based on the detection signal from the side collision sensor 50, the EUC 40 operates the inflator 36 of the vehicle seat 11. .

(Trim and garnish)
Further, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the occupant protection device 10 has an impact absorption assisting structure 60 for increasing a stroke for absorbing (absorbing energy) an impact on a seated occupant during a side collision. It has. The shock absorption assisting structure 60 is configured as a structure that facilitates deformation due to the impact of the interior material located on the outer side in the vehicle width direction with respect to the seated occupant P (lowers the load required for deformation).

  Specifically, the shock absorption assisting structure 60 has a trim low strength as a low strength portion that facilitates deformation of the door trim 62 that is an interior material that covers the side door 21 from the inside in the vehicle width direction in the vehicle width direction outward load. A portion 64 is provided. Further, the shock absorbing auxiliary structure 60 is a garnish low-strength portion 68 as a low-strength portion that facilitates deformation of the pillar garnish 66 that is an interior material that covers the center pillar 20 from the inner side in the vehicle width direction. It has.

  The door trim 62 is opposed to the seated occupant P in the vehicle width direction at the rear portion, and has a rear wall 62R extending in the vehicle width direction (facing the rear) in a plan view in the rear end portion. The trim low strength portion 64 is configured by thinning a part of the rear wall 62R in the vehicle width direction. The trim low-strength portion 64 functions as a deformation starting point (trigger portion) with respect to an outward load in the vehicle width direction from the seated occupant P. The pillar garnish 66 has a front wall 66F that extends in the vehicle width direction and faces the rear wall 62R of the door trim 62 in the front-rear direction. And the garnish low intensity | strength part 68 is comprised by thinning a part of the vehicle width direction of the front wall 66F. The garnish low-strength portion 68 functions as a deformation starting point (trigger portion) with respect to an outward load in the vehicle width direction from the seated occupant P.

(Function)
Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. In the following description, it is assumed that the side collision occurs on the side where the vehicle seat 11 is arranged in the vehicle width direction of the automobile A.

  In the occupant protection device 10 configured as described above, when the side collision ECU 40 receives the prediction signal from the side collision prediction sensor 52, the seated occupant P of the vehicle seat 11 wraps with the center pillar 20 in a side view based on the occupant information. Determine whether or not. If the determination is negative, the electric motor 46 is not operated. When the side collision ECU 40 receives the detection signal from the side collision sensor 50, the side collision ECU 40 operates the inflator 36 of the vehicle seat 11. Thereby, the seated occupant P of the vehicle seat 11 is protected by the inflated and deployed side airbag 34.

  On the other hand, when the above determination based on the occupant information is an affirmative determination, the side collision ECU 40 rotates each electric motor 46 in the normal direction. As a result, the lap of the seated occupant P with the center pillar 20 is eliminated or the lap amount in the front-rear direction (hereinafter simply referred to as “lap amount”) is reduced. When the side collision ECU 40 determines that the lap between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20 has been eliminated based on the occupant information, the side collision ECU 40 stops the forward rotation of each electric motor 46.

  When the side collision ECU 40 receives the detection signal from the side collision sensor 50, the side collision ECU 40 operates the inflator 36 of the vehicle seat 11. Then, the side airbag 34 protrudes forward from the vehicle width direction outer end of the seat back 14 of the vehicle seat 11, and the side airbag 34 is inflated and deployed between the seated occupant P and the side door 21. .

  Here, in the comparative example that does not include the seat advancing mechanism 32, depending on the front and rear positions of the vehicle seat 11 before the side collision, the seated occupant P of the vehicle seat 11 is wrapped with the center pillar 20 in a side view. It is conceivable that a side collision will occur in this state. The center pillar 20 has a high-strength (not easily crushed against an outward load in the vehicle width direction) skeletal structure among the vehicle body structures positioned on the vehicle width direction outer side of the seat 11 for the vehicle seat 11. For this reason, when the amount of lap between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20 is large, the effective stroke for absorbing the impact by the side airbag 34 is sufficiently increased due to the difficulty of deformation (collapse) of the center pillar 20. Is difficult to secure. That is, in the configuration of the comparative example, there is a concern that the load (peak value) acting on the seated occupant P at the time of a side collision increases depending on the front and rear positions of the vehicle seat 11. As a countermeasure against this, in the configuration of this comparative example, there is a restriction on the vehicle body structure and the seat arrangement, such as adopting a configuration in which the vehicle seat 11 is arranged at a position (range) where the seated occupant P does not wrap with the center pillar 20.

  On the other hand, in the occupant protection device 10, when a side collision is predicted in a lap state between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20 (if the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20 are wrapping when the side collision is predicted). ), The vehicle seat 11 is advanced by the seat advance mechanism 32. For this reason, in a state where a side collision has occurred, the amount of lap between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20 is reduced, or the lap is eliminated.

  As a result, the side airbag 34 is inflated and deployed between the side door 21 and the seated occupant P, which are relatively low-strength portions in front of the center pillar 20 relative to the vehicle. For example, when the host vehicle is a pole-side collision in which a pole such as a utility pole collides, the side airbag 34 is supported by the reaction force while crushing the side door 21, and the seated occupant P moves outward in the vehicle width direction. Limit. That is, by crushing the side door 21, an effective stroke for absorbing impact by the side airbag 34 is secured, and the seat occupant P is restrained from moving outward in the vehicle width direction due to inertia. Further, in the case of an MDB side collision in which the opponent vehicle collides with the side surface of the own vehicle, the load from the side door 21 moving to the passenger compartment side is transmitted to the seat occupant P via the side airbag 34. In this case as well, as in the case of the above-mentioned pole side collision, the side door 21 is crushed, so that an effective stroke for absorbing shock is secured.

  Therefore, in the occupant protection device 10 according to the present embodiment, the load acting on the seated occupant P at the time of a side collision can be kept low. In other words, it is possible to improve the vehicle body structure and the degree of freedom of seat arrangement while ensuring the protection performance of the seated occupant P.

  In particular, since the side airbag 34 is configured such that the rear chamber 34R is inflated and deployed at a high internal pressure with respect to the front chamber 34F, when the side airbag 34 is inflated and deployed between the center pillar 20 and the seated occupant P, the side airbag 34R is seated. The support load (peak value) of the occupant P tends to increase. Against this, since the occupant protection device 10 according to the present embodiment includes the seat advancement mechanism 32, a sufficient effective stroke is secured as described above, and the seated occupant is effectively restrained by the side airbag 34. Can do. That is, the side airbag 34 firmly supports the shoulder center Sc, which is a highly rigid portion of the seated occupant P, in the rear chamber 34R with a relatively high internal pressure, while crushing the side door 21 so that the seat occupant P Support load can be kept low. Therefore, the movement restriction | limiting of the seating passenger | crew P and suppression of the support load of the seating passenger | crew P accompanying this restriction | limiting are achieved.

  Moreover, in the occupant protection device 10, the trim low strength portion 64 is formed on the rear wall 62 </ b> R of the door trim 62, and the garnish low strength portion 68 is formed on the front wall 66 </ b> F of the pillar garnish 66. In other words, the rear wall 62R and the front wall 66F extending in the vehicle width direction against the load from the rear chamber 34R in the door trim 62 and the pillar garnish 66 are provided with a trim low-strength portion 64 and a garnish low that cause deformation. A strength portion 68 is formed. For this reason, when the rear chamber 34R is inflated and deployed between the seated occupant P and the rear part of the side door 21 or the front part of the center pillar 20, the rear part starts from the trim low-strength part 64 and the garnish low-strength part 68. The wall 62R and the front wall 66F are deformed (buckled). Accordingly, an effective stroke for absorbing an impact by the side airbag 34 is secured, and the seat occupant P is restricted from moving outward in the vehicle width direction due to inertia.

  Further, the occupant protection device 10 includes a seat advance mechanism 32 for advancing the vehicle seat 11 when a side collision is predicted, with the seat slide mechanism 22 for adjusting the longitudinal position of the vehicle seat 11 as a mechanical main component. It is composed. In other words, the seat advancing mechanism 32 shares mechanical components with the seat slide mechanism 22. Therefore, as described above, the occupant's protection performance against side collision can be improved without newly installing a dedicated seat advance mechanism.

  Further, since the seat advancing mechanism 32 includes a plurality (two) of electric motors 46, the generated power with respect to the moving load of the vehicle seat 11 is greater than that of the configuration including the single electric motor 46. . Therefore, when a side collision is predicted in the lap state between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20, the vehicle seat 11 can be moved forward in the vehicle.

  In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the occupant protection device 10 includes the side airbag device 30 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in a configuration that does not include the side airbag device, the vehicle seat 11 may be advanced when a side collision is predicted in a lap state between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20. Even in this configuration, the seated occupant P moves outward in the vehicle width direction due to inertia in a state of being offset forward with respect to the center pillar 20 that is a high-strength portion of the vehicle body or in a state where the lap amount is reduced in a side collision. Is limited. For this reason, the load (peak value) received by the seated occupant P from the vehicle body with the movement outward in the vehicle width direction is reduced.

  In the above-described embodiment, the example in which the two electric motors 46 constitute the seat slide mechanism 22 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the seat slide mechanism 22 having a single electric motor 46 as a drive source may be configured to additionally drive another electric motor 46 when functioning as the seat advance mechanism 32. For example, another electric motor 46 for the seat advance mechanism 32 is connected to the gear mechanism 48 via a clutch or the like so that torque is transmitted to the gear mechanism 48 only when the seat advance mechanism 32 functions. Also good.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the vehicle seat 11 is advanced as a whole as the seat advance mechanism 32 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when a side collision is predicted in the lap state between the seated occupant P and the center pillar 20, the seat back 14 may be forcibly raised with respect to the seat cushion 12 (driven in the reclining cancellation direction). For example, in the vehicle seat 11 provided with the electric reclining mechanism, the seat back 14 can be forcibly raised with respect to the seat cushion 12 using the electric reclining mechanism.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the example in which the seat advancing mechanism 32 is configured using the existing adjustment mechanism (seat slide mechanism 22) for the vehicle seat 11 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the occupant protection device 10 may include a dedicated mechanism for forcibly moving the vehicle seat 11 (seat back 14) forward by an electric motor or a gas generator.

  In the above-described embodiment, the shock absorption assisting structure 60 includes both the trim low strength portion 64 of the door trim 62 and the garnish low strength portion 68 of the pillar garnish 66, but the present invention is not limited to this. . For example, a configuration including either one of the trim low-strength portion 64 and the garnish low-strength portion 68 may be employed, and a configuration not including both the trim low-strength portion 64 and the garnish low-strength portion 68 may be employed.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the occupant protection device 10 for the driver seat or the passenger seat is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention can be applied to a seat that a seated occupant can wrap in a side view with a pillar in a rear seat and the second and subsequent seats when there are three or more rows of vehicle seats. Therefore, the pillar of the present invention is not limited to the center pillar 20.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the example in which the seat advancing mechanism 32 is operated when the seated occupant P is wrapped on the center pillar 20 based on the occupant information is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the occupant protection device 10 may be configured to operate the seat advancing mechanism 32 when a side collision is predicted without receiving occupant information. Such a configuration, in the range of pre-adjusted For example can be used in the configuration or the like wrap the seating occupant P and the pillar persists.

  In addition, it goes without saying that the present invention can be implemented with various modifications without departing from the gist thereof.

10 occupant protection device 12 seat cushion 14 seat back 20 center pillar (pillar)
21 Side door 22 Seat slide mechanism (adjustment device)
32 Sheet advance mechanism (sheet drive means)
34 Side airbag 34R Rear chamber 34F Front chamber 46 Electric motor 62 Door trim 62R Rear wall (wall)
64 Trim low strength part (low strength part)
66 pillar garnish 66F front wall (wall)
68 Garnish low strength part (low strength part)

Claims (5)

An adjustment device for electrically adjusting the longitudinal position of the seat cushion with respect to the vehicle body;
When a side collision in a state where the seated occupant is positioned to overlap the pillar in a side view is predicted based on at least the front-rear position information of the seat cushion and a prediction signal from the collision prediction sensor, the adjustment device is used. Seat drive means for moving the seat back forward of the vehicle without rotating together with the seat cushion;
An air bag provided on the seat back and inflated and deployed on the outer side in the vehicle width direction with respect to a seated occupant by receiving gas supply at the time of a side collision;
An occupant protection device. An adjustment device for electrically adjusting the front-rear position of the seat cushion with respect to the vehicle body in a range in which the state where the seated occupant overlaps the pillar in a side view is not eliminated ;
When a side collision is predicted based on a prediction signal from a collision prediction sensor, the adjustment device is used to reduce the amount of overlap between the seated occupant and the pillar in a side view, together with the seat cushion. Seat driving means for moving the vehicle forward without rotating ,
An air bag provided on the seat back and inflated and deployed on the outer side in the vehicle width direction with respect to a seated occupant by receiving gas supply at the time of a side collision;
An occupant protection device.   The seat drive means is configured to move the seat cushion forward of the vehicle by a plurality of electric motors when a side collision is predicted and the seat back is moved forward of the vehicle together with the seat cushion. Or the occupant protection device according to claim 2.   The air bag includes a front chamber and a rear chamber that is inflated and deployed at an internal pressure higher than an internal pressure of the front chamber on the vehicle rear side with respect to the front chamber. The occupant protection device according to any one of the above.   A wall portion along the vehicle width direction constituting the rear end portion of the door trim of the side door located in front of the vehicle of the pillar, and a vehicle width direction constituting the front end portion of the pillar garnish covering the pillar from the inside of the vehicle. The occupant according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a low-strength portion that is provided on at least one of the wall portions and is lower in strength than other portions with respect to a load from the inside in the vehicle width direction. Protective device.

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