JP7402783B2 - Vehicle seat/airbag integrated occupant protection device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an occupant protection device using a combination of a vehicle seat and an airbag. In particular, the present invention relates to an occupant protection device most suitable for a vehicle seat equipped with an airbag having a head protection area.

It is well known to provide vehicles with one or more airbags to protect occupants in the event of a vehicle accident. Airbags are, for example, so-called driver airbags that inflate from around the center of the steering wheel to protect the driver, and airbags that deploy downwards inside the car window to prevent lateral impacts, rollovers, and rollover accidents. There are various types of airbags, such as curtain airbags that protect occupants during vehicle lateral impacts, and side airbags that deploy between the occupant and side panels to protect occupants during lateral impacts of the vehicle.

As shown in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, airbags installed in vehicle seats have been proposed that deploy around the occupant's head to protect the occupant's head. .

The airbag described in Patent Document 1 is configured to completely cover the front of the occupant's head. On the other hand, the airbag described in Patent Document 2 has a configuration in which the front of the occupant's head is opened.

However, when a head-on collision or an oblique collision occurs, the occupant's upper body moves forward due to inertia, so conventional airbag devices such as those disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 do not protect the occupant. may not be adequately protected. In the airbag disclosed in Patent Document 2, for example, if a diagonal collision occurs, the head of the occupant will come out of the protection area of the airbag forward. On the other hand, in the airbag described in Patent Document 1, the occupant's head may come into strong contact with the airbag, which may cause injury to the occupant's head and neck.

In addition, in the conventional airbag devices disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, not only the head protection area of the airbag but also the side protection area that protects the side of the occupant's torso protects the occupant and the airbag ( The relative positional relationship with the seatback (seat back) is disrupted, making it difficult to protect the occupants appropriately.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-128235 JP 2017-43175 Publication

The present invention has been made in view of the above situation, and an object of the present invention is to provide an occupant protection device that can appropriately protect an occupant even when the occupant moves forward.

Below, the means for solving the above problems and the effects thereof will be explained. In addition, in the present invention, when the passenger is seated in the seat facing the direction of travel in a normal posture, the direction in which the passenger is facing is referred to as "front", and the opposite direction is referred to as "rear", indicating the axis of coordinates. Time is called ``front-to-back direction.'' Furthermore, when the occupant is seated in the seat in a normal posture, the right side of the occupant is referred to as the "right direction", the left side of the occupant is referred to as the "left direction", and the axis of coordinates is referred to as the "left/right direction". Further, when the occupant is seated in the seat in a normal posture, the direction of the occupant's head is referred to as ``upward'', the direction of the occupant's waist is referred to as ``downward'', and the axis of coordinates is referred to as ``upward and downward direction''.

In order to achieve the above object, an occupant protection device according to the present invention includes a vehicle seat having a seat cushion forming a seat surface, and a seat back connected to the seat cushion by a rotation shaft; an inflator that is generated; an airbag that is housed in the seat back and protects the side and head of an occupant seated on the vehicle seat by being inflated and deployed by the inflation gas; and deployment of the airbag. and a rotation mechanism for rotating the seat back forward about the rotation axis.

Here, the "side parts of the occupant" can be understood as the left and right side parts of the torso (including the arms) of the occupant seated on the seat. Furthermore, "rotating forward" is an image of the seat back collapsing forward.

In the present invention, the seat back is rotated forward (tilted down) at the same time as the airbag is inflated and deployed, so that the seat back comes into close contact with or follows the back of the occupant. The fact that the seatback follows the movement of the occupant means that the airbag deployed from the seatback follows the movement of the occupant, that is, the ideal positional relationship between the airbag and the occupant is maintained. Therefore, even if the occupant falls forward due to the deployed airbag, the occupant can be appropriately protected.

When the vehicle seat includes a locking mechanism that maintains the rotational position of the rotating shaft, the rotating mechanism may be configured to release the locking mechanism when the airbag is deployed. The lock mechanism fixes the reclining position of the seat back. As the rotation mechanism, for example, a micro gas generator that destroys the lock mechanism can be employed. In addition to destroying the lock mechanism, it is also possible to disconnect the gears of the lock mechanism.

The seat back may be configured to rotate forward by the force of the airbag deploying when the locking mechanism is released.

The rotation shaft may include a torsion bar that applies a load when the seatback rotates.

The rotation mechanism may include a motor that rotates the rotation shaft. Further, the motor may be configured to be able to control the rotation of the seatback in accordance with the value of acceleration G generated at the time of a vehicle collision. By adopting such a configuration, the rotation of the seat back can be controlled more precisely. For example, when acceleration (deceleration) G in the longitudinal direction is large, the seat back is moved (rotated) quickly and greatly, and when acceleration (deceleration) G is small, the seat back is moved (rotated). can be made gradual and small.

The airbag includes a side protection area that expands to cover the occupant's torso from the sides on both left and right sides of the seatback; and a side protection area that is connected to an upper part of the side protection area and extends at least to the side of the occupant's head. and a head protection area for protecting the upper part.

The head protection area of the airbag can be configured to be deployable so as to cover the entire side, upper, and front of the occupant's head. When an airbag having such a structure is adopted, it becomes possible to omit a so-called front airbag such as a driver airbag and a passenger seat airbag.

The present invention is preferably applied to a type of vehicle seat that has a built-in seat belt for restraining an occupant. For example, a structure may be adopted in which a seat belt pulled out from near the upper end of the seat back is connected by a buckle near the lower end of the seat back. By adopting this structure, when the seatback is rotated forward (folded forward), the seatbelt also moves in conjunction with this, ensuring that the seatback is folded down. becomes possible. On the other hand, if the seatbelt is structured to be pulled out from the B-pillar, the pretensioner will wind up the seatbelt in the event of an impact such as a frontal collision, and the occupant will be restrained from moving forward by the seatbelt. Ru. Therefore, when attempting to rotate the seat back forward, the occupant is pulled in the opposite direction (backward), making it difficult to fold the seat back.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view mainly showing the external shape of a vehicle seat to which an occupant protection device according to the present invention can be applied. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an internal structure (seat frame) that functions as a frame of the vehicle seat shown in FIG. FIGS. 3A and 3B are explanatory diagrams showing a configuration including a control system of the occupant protection device according to the present invention, and the configurations of the rotation mechanism are different between FIGS. 3A and 3B. FIG. 4 schematically shows the operating state (inflated state of the airbag) of the occupant protection device according to the present invention, as seen from the left side in the vehicle width direction. FIG. 5 schematically shows the operating state of a conventional occupant protection device (side airbag device), as seen from the left side in the vehicle width direction. FIG. 6 shows the operating state (deployment state of the airbag) of the airbag employed in the occupant protection device according to the first embodiment of the present invention, in which (A) shows the state seen from the side in the vehicle width direction. (B) shows the situation as seen from the front. FIG. 7 shows the operating state (deployment state of the airbag) of the airbag employed in the occupant protection device according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and (A) shows the state of operation of the airbag as seen from the side in the vehicle width direction. (B) shows the situation as seen from the front.

Hereinafter, an occupant protection device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail based on the accompanying drawings. Again, in each figure, "front" refers to the front of the vehicle (in the direction of travel), "rear" refers to the rear of the vehicle (opposite to the direction of travel), and "inside" refers to the width of the vehicle. Inside (occupant side) and "outside" refer to the outside in the vehicle width direction (side opposite to the passenger), respectively.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view mainly showing the external shape of a vehicle seat to which an occupant protection device according to the present invention can be applied. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an internal structure (seat frame) that functions as a frame of the vehicle seat shown in FIG. Note that illustration of the airbag device is omitted in FIGS. 1 and 2.

As shown in FIG. 1, when a vehicle seat is viewed as a part, it includes a seat cushion 2 where an occupant sits; a seat back 1 forming a backrest; and a headrest 3 connected to the upper end of the seat back 1. Contains.

As shown in FIG. 2, a seat back frame 1f that forms the frame of the seat is provided inside the seat back 1, and a pad and skin (not shown) made of urethane foam or the like are provided on and around the surface of the seat back frame 1f. It is being Similarly to the seat back 1, the seat cushion 2 is also provided with a pad and a skin (not shown) made of urethane foam or the like on the upper surface and surrounding area of the seating frame 2f. The seating frame 2f and the seat back frame 1f are connected via the reclining mechanism 4 and the rotation shaft 13.

As shown in FIG. 2, the seat back frame 1f includes side frames 10L and 10R that are spaced apart laterally and extend in the vertical direction, and an upper frame 11 that connects the upper ends of these side frames 10L and 10R. , and a lower frame connecting the lower end portions.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are explanatory diagrams showing a configuration including a control system of the occupant protection device according to the present invention, and the configurations of the rotation mechanism are different between FIGS. 3A and 3B. FIG. 4 schematically shows the operating state of the occupant protection device according to the present invention (the deployed state of the airbag 14), as seen from the left side in the vehicle width direction. FIG. 5 schematically shows the operating state of a conventional occupant protection device (side airbag device), as seen from the left side in the vehicle width direction.

The occupant protection device according to the present invention includes inflators 12R and 12L that generate inflation gas; and the inflators 12R and 12L that are housed in the seat back 1 and are inflated and deployed by the inflation gas to protect the sides and head of an occupant seated on a vehicle seat. and a rotation mechanism (4, 14, 30, 40) that rotates the seatback 1 forward about the rotation shaft 13 when the airbag 14 is deployed. ing.

In the example shown in FIG. 3(A), the reclining mechanism 4 of the vehicle seat is provided with a locking mechanism (not shown) that maintains the rotational position of the rotation shaft 13. In the present invention, when the sensor 32 detects a collision (frontal collision, diagonal collision, etc.), the ECU 34 operates the inflators 12R and 12L to inflate the airbag 14, and at the same time, the micro gas generator 30 is used to activate the locking mechanism. Remove by physically destroying it. When the lock mechanism is released, the seat back 1 is configured to rotate forward (fall down) due to the force of the airbag 14 deployed, as shown in FIG.

In the occupant protection device according to the present invention, the rotation shaft 13 can be provided with a torsion bar that applies a load when the seatback 1 rotates.

In the example shown in FIG. 3(B), the vehicle seat reclining mechanism 4 uses a motor 40 to electrically rotate the rotating shaft 13 to recline the seat back 1. In this example, when the sensor 32 detects a collision (frontal collision, diagonal collision, etc.), the ECU 34 operates the inflators 12R and 12L to deploy the airbag 14, and at the same time, the motor 40 is used to rotate the rotation shaft 13. Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the seat back 1 is rotated forward.

Preferably, the sensor 32 detects the acceleration G generated at the time of a vehicle collision, and the rotation speed and rotation angle of the seat back 1 are controlled according to the value of the acceleration G. For example, when the acceleration (deceleration) G in the longitudinal direction is large, the seat back 1 is moved (rotated) quickly and greatly, and when the acceleration (deceleration) G is small, the seat back 1 is moved (rotated). It is possible to perform control to slow down and reduce the

As shown in FIG. 4, in the present invention, the seat back 1 is rotated forward at the timing when the airbag 14 is inflated and deployed, so that the upper body of the occupant is prevented from falling forward in a head-on collision or an oblique collision. When the seatback 1 moves, the seatback 1 comes into close contact with the occupant's back or moves (falls down) following the occupant's back. The fact that the seatback 1 follows the movement of the occupant means that the airbag 14 deployed from the seatback 1 follows the movement of the occupant, that is, the relative (ideal) positional relationship between the airbag 14 and the occupant. will be maintained. Therefore, even when the occupant falls forward, the deployed airbag 14 can protect the occupant in an appropriate state.

It should be noted that the operation and effect of the present invention shown in FIG. 4 are summarized and simply shown in the first embodiment and the second embodiment, which will be described later.

If a structure is not adopted in which the seatback 1 rotates in synchronization with the deployment of the airbag 14 as in the present invention, as shown in FIG. The seat back 1 moves forward due to inertia, and the relative positional relationship between the occupant and the seat back 1 collapses. As a result, the head and shoulders of the occupant move forward from the protection area of the airbag 14.

(First example)
FIG. 6 shows the operating state (deployed state of the airbag) of the airbag 14 employed in the occupant protection device according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and (A) shows the state of operation of the airbag 14 adopted in the occupant protection device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. (B) shows the view from the front.

The occupant protection device according to this embodiment includes a pair of inflators 12L and 12R that are housed in the left and right sides of a seat back 1 and generate inflation gas, and are housed in the seat bag 1 in a rolled or folded state. , and an airbag 14 that is inflated by inflation gas released from the inflators 12L and 12R. In this embodiment, the seat back 1 is separated from the headrest 3, but the side airbag device according to the present invention can also be applied to a seatback with an integrated headrest.

The airbag 14 in the accommodated state is arranged along the left and right side frames 10L, 10R (see FIG. 2), and has lower regions 16L, 16R located below the inflators 12L, 12R, and the left and right side frames 10L, 10R. An upper region 18 is arranged along the seat frame 11 above the inflator 10R and located above the inflators 12L and 12R.

The upper region 18 is formed to connect the upper end portions of the left and right lower regions 16L, 16R, and is expanded from near the upper edge of the seat back 1 so as to wrap around the occupant's head. As a result, the lower regions 16L and 16R mainly protect the occupant's waist to chest region, and the upper region 18 mainly protects the occupant's head region (from the shoulders to the head).

When fixing the airbag 14 to the side frames 10L, 10R, the inflator 12L, 12R is attached to the inside or inside of the side frame 10L, 10R using stud bolts (not shown) while the airbag 14 is compressed into a long and thin shape. Fix it on the outside.

The seat back 1 has a built-in seat belt unit (including a retractor). For example, the seat belt SB pulled out from near the upper end of the seat back 1 is connected to the side of the seat cushion 2 or near the lower end of the seat back 1 with a buckle. Further, the pretensioner can be constructed to be housed inside the seat cushion 2.

As shown in FIG. 6, when a vehicle collision occurs (frontal, side, diagonal), inflation gas is released from the inflators 12L, 12R, and the airbag 14 inflates and deploys. When the airbag 14 begins to inflate, gas flows into the lower regions 16L, 16R and the upper region 18. The lower regions 16L and 16R of the airbag 14 are deployed, for example, inside the side frames 10L and 10R, and are deployed toward the occupant (inside) and forward (travel direction). At this time, the lower regions 16L, 16R are expanded toward the passenger using the inner surfaces (occupant-side surfaces) of the side frames 10L, 10R as reaction surfaces.

On the other hand, the upper region 18 of the airbag 14 jumps over the headrest 3 from the upper end of the seatback 1 and deploys forward, so as to cover the back of the occupant's head toward the front.

In this embodiment, as in the case briefly shown in FIG. 4, the seatback 1 rotates forward at the same time as the airbag 14 inflates and deploys, and the seatback 1 comes into close contact with the back of the occupant. Follow and move (fall down). As a result, the relative (ideal) positional relationship between the airbag 14 and the occupant is maintained, and the deployed airbag 14 can protect the occupant in an appropriate state even if the occupant falls forward. It becomes possible. In particular, when the occupant's head enters the upper protection area 18, the impact on the occupant's head can be sufficiently alleviated.

In this embodiment, when the seatback 1 is rotated forward (folded forward), the seatbelt SB also moves in conjunction with this, so that the seatback 1 is not obstructed by the seatbelt SB. This makes it possible to reliably fold down the seat back 1. On the other hand, if the seatbelt SB is structured to be pulled out from the B-pillar, the pretensioner will wind up the seatbelt in the event of an impact such as a frontal collision, and the occupant will be restrained from moving forward by the seatbelt. be done. Therefore, when attempting to rotate the seat back forward, the occupant is pulled in the opposite direction (backward), making it difficult to fold the seat back.

(Second example)
FIG. 7 shows the operating state (deployed state of the airbag) of the airbag 114 employed in the occupant protection device according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and (A) shows the state of operation of the airbag 114 when viewed from the side in the vehicle width direction. (B) shows the view from the front. Although illustration of the seatbelt is omitted in this embodiment, it is preferable that the seatbelt unit (including the retractor) is built into the vehicle seat, similar to the first embodiment described above.

The airbag 114 is connected to a head protection area (125, 126) that inflates and deploys to cover the occupant's head from the front and both sides, and to the rear lower part of the head protection area (125, 126), and protects the occupant's head from both sides. It has a pair of side cushion parts 122R and 122L that are inflated and deployed so as to cover the torso from the sides.

The head protection areas (125, 126) include a pair of side head protection areas 125 that expand and expand to cover the occupant's head from both sides, and a front protection area that expands and expands to cover the occupant's head from the front. 126. Note that the front side of the front protection area 126 has a closed shape, so that the front protection area 126 and the side head protection area 126 are integrally expanded to cover the occupant's head. .

Functionally, the airbag 114 according to this embodiment has a side impact airbag (temporal head protection area 125 and side cushion parts 122R, 122L) and a frontal impact airbag (front protection area 26). This is an all-in-one collision-ready airbag.

A notch 124 is formed between the upper end of each of the side cushion parts 122R, 122L and the lower end of the temporal head protection area 125 to avoid interference with the shoulders of the occupant.

In this embodiment, as in the case briefly shown in FIG. 4, the seatback 1 rotates forward at the same time as the airbag 114 inflates and deploys, and the seatback 1 comes into close contact with the back of the occupant. Follow and move (fall down). As a result, the relative (ideal) positional relationship between the airbag 114 and the occupant is maintained, and the deployed airbag 114 can protect the occupant in an appropriate state even if the occupant falls forward. It becomes possible. In particular, when the occupant's head enters the front protection area 126, the impact on the occupant's head can be sufficiently alleviated.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to Examples, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned Examples. That is, changes can be made as appropriate without departing from the scope of the technical idea of the present invention.

Claims (10)

A vehicle seat including a seat cushion forming a seat surface, and a seat back connected to the seat cushion by a rotation shaft;
an inflator that generates inflation gas;
an airbag that is housed in the seat back and inflates and deploys forward by the inflation gas to protect the sides and head of an occupant seated in the vehicle seat;
a rotation mechanism that rotates the seat back forward about the rotation axis at the timing when the airbag inflates and deploys;
An occupant protection device characterized in that the vehicle seat has a built-in seat belt retractor . The vehicle seat includes a locking mechanism that maintains the rotational position of the rotational shaft,
The occupant protection device according to claim 1, wherein the rotation mechanism is configured to release the lock mechanism when the airbag is deployed. The occupant protection device according to claim 2, wherein the rotation mechanism includes a micro gas generator used to destroy the locking mechanism. 4. The occupant protection device according to claim 2, wherein the seat back is configured to rotate forward by the force of the airbag deploying when the locking mechanism is released. The occupant protection device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the rotation shaft includes a torsion bar that applies a load when the seatback rotates. The occupant protection device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the rotation mechanism includes a motor that rotates the rotation shaft. 7. The occupant protection device according to claim 6, wherein the motor is configured to be able to control rotation of the seat back according to a value of acceleration G generated at the time of a vehicle collision. The airbag includes a side protection area that expands to cover the occupant's torso from the sides on both left and right sides of the seatback; and a side protection area that is connected to an upper part of the side protection area and extends at least to the side of the occupant's head. The occupant protection device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising: a head protection area for protecting an upper portion of the occupant protection device; The occupant protection device according to claim 8, wherein the head protection area of the airbag is configured to be deployable so as to cover the entire side, upper, and front of the occupant's head. The occupant protection device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the vehicle seat has a built-in seat belt retractor .

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