JPH07125610A - Hood air bad device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To suppress the temperature rise of an inflator by mounting an air bag on the inner surface of a hood in the vicinity of an opening part formed in the hood or the peripheral part of the hood, mounting the inflator on the body side in the vicinity of the opening part, and communicating the air bag with the inflator by a gas introducing tube. CONSTITUTION:An openingpart 13 is formed to the right side of a hood 12, and an inflator 17 and a hood air bag 15 are provided in a case 16 provided on the inner side thereof. When a vehicle is collided with a pedestrian, a collision-with-pedestrian detecting sensor detects the collision, and the gas is supplied from the inflator 17 to the hood air bag 15 through a gas introducing tube 18. The hood air bag 15 is separated from the inflator 17, and mounted on the reverse side of a hood 12, and the air bag unit can be formed thin. The inflator 17 is separated from the hood air bag 5 and installed on the body side, the heat effect of the engine or the like can be reduced.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a hood that protects a pedestrian by absorbing and absorbing the impact of a secondary collision of the pedestrian on the hood of the vehicle body when the running vehicle collides with the pedestrian. The present invention relates to an airbag device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art It is known that when a running vehicle collides with a pedestrian, the collided pedestrian is secondarily collided with the lower half of the body by the front portion of the vehicle body and the upper surface of the hood at the front portion of the vehicle body. There is. For example, FIG. 18 shows US Pat.
6 shows a safety device for pedestrian protection disclosed in No. 632. When a collision of a pedestrian 4 is detected by a sensor 3 provided on a bumper 2 at a front end of a vehicle 1, a hood 5 The airbag 6 installed at the lower end inflates and deploys,
The rear end side of the hood 5 is elastically lifted upward so that the hood 5
The rear end of the pedestrian 4 is supported by the cushioning action of the airbag 6 so as to reduce the impact when the pedestrian 4 makes a secondary collision with the hood 5.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional safety device for protecting pedestrians, the hood 5 is reinforced by the skeleton member provided on the back surface thereof, so that the hood 5 has a relatively high rigidity. There is a problem that a sufficient cushioning effect cannot be obtained only by deforming.

Therefore, the inventors developed a method of deploying an air bag on the hood and protecting a pedestrian who collides with the hood by the air bag, but the lower side of the hood has a high temperature in the engine room. Therefore, it is difficult to set the place for storing the airbag and the inflator.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an airbag that is deployed on a hood of a vehicle and absorbs and absorbs an impact when a pedestrian makes a secondary collision with the hood is most suitable place. It is an object of the present invention to provide a hood airbag device arranged in.

[0006]

As a means for solving the above-mentioned problems, a hood airbag apparatus of the present invention uses an air bag to inflate an airbag with gas generated by an inflator when a collision with a pedestrian is detected. In a hood airbag device that is deployed on a hood, an opening is formed in the hood of the vehicle body or a rim of the hood, the airbag is attached to the inner surface of the hood near the opening, and an inflator for inflating the airbag is provided. It is characterized in that the air bag and the inflator are mounted on the body side in the vicinity of the opening and are connected by a gas introduction pipe.

Further, the opening can be formed in the vicinity of a hood hinge on which the hood is openably and closably attached to the body side.

Furthermore, when a collision with a pedestrian is detected,
In a hood airbag device for deploying an airbag on a hood of a vehicle body by gas generated by an inflator, an opening is formed in the hood of the vehicle body or a rim of the hood, and the airbag is provided near the opening and the airbag. And an inflator for inflating the inflator, and a gas introducing pipe connecting the air bag and the inflator to each other is installed in the reinforcement member provided on the back surface of the hood.

Further, the reinforce material can be used as an outside air introduction passage for cooling the inflator.

[0010]

With the above construction, an opening is formed in the hood of the vehicle body or in the peripheral portion of the hood, the airbag is attached to the inner surface of the hood near the opening, and the inflator is inflated. Is attached to the body side in the vicinity of the opening, and the air bag and the inflator are connected for communication by a gas introduction pipe. By separating the air bag from the inflator, the storage part of the air bag to be attached to the hood is provided. Can be thin. Further, since the inflator separated from the airbag is attached to the body side, it can be installed separately from the heat source such as the engine.

If the opening is formed in the vicinity of the hood hinge that is attached to the body so that the hood is openable and closable, the length of the gas introduction pipe such as a hose for connecting the air bag and the inflator to each other can be reduced. It gets shorter.

If a part of the gas introducing pipe is installed on the reinforcement member provided on the back surface of the hood,
The exposed length of the gas introduction pipe becomes shorter.

Further, if the reinforce material is used as an outside air introduction passage for cooling the inflator, the inflator installed in the high temperature engine room is effectively cooled.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the hood airbag device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

1 to 3 show a first embodiment of a hood airbag device according to the present invention. In this hood airbag device, a right edge portion of a hood 12 of a vehicle body 11 is cut into a rectangular shape to form an opening 13. The opening 13 is formed by painting like the outer panel of the hood 12, and is openably closed by a lid 14 mounted so as to be flush with the surface of the hood 12. Inside the opening 13, a thin case 16 that opens toward the opening 13 is attached to the inside of the hood 12, and a hood airbag 15 is folded and stored therein. An inflator 17 is installed below the hood airbag 15 on the body side near the opening 13, and the inflator 17 and the case 16 in which the hood airbag 15 is housed are a case-side introduction pipe. 16a
And gas introduction pipe 1 including an inflator-side introduction pipe 17a
The gas generated in the inflator 17 is connected to the hood airbag 15 by means of 8. Further, the case-side introduction pipe 16a of the gas introduction pipe 18 and the inflator-side introduction pipe 17a are provided so as to be separated when the hood 12 is opened, and automatically connected to each other when the hood 12 is closed. 1 and 2, the reference numeral 19 indicates
It is a pedestrian collision detection sensor provided on the front bumper 20 at the front end of the vehicle body.

Next, the operation of this embodiment configured as described above will be explained. When a collision occurs with a pedestrian during traveling, the pedestrian collision detection sensor 19 mounted on the front bumper 20 causes When the collision is detected, an ignition current is supplied to the inflator 17, and the gas generated in the inflator 17 is supplied to the hood airbag 15 in the case 16 via the gas introduction pipe 18. The hood airbag 15 expands when gas is supplied, and the hood 1
2 Unfold to cover the top. At this time, when gas is supplied to the hood airbag 15, the hood airbag 15
Expands the lid 14 outward by the expanding pressure, bulges from the opening 13, and expands so as to cover the hood 12. Therefore, the hood airbag 15 absorbs and alleviates the impact when the collided pedestrian is bounced and makes a secondary collision on the hood 12.

Further, in this embodiment, the hood airbag 15 is separated from the inflator 17, and only the hood airbag 15 is attached to the back side of the hood 12, so that the airbag unit can be formed thin and the engine room of an engine or the like can be formed. A wide gap can be provided between the upper ends of the built-in objects, and since it is not necessary to attach the heavy inflator 17 to the hood 12, the force for closing the hood 12 can be reduced. Further, the impact applied to the inflator 17 can be eliminated, and the stress on the gas generating agent similar to explosive can be reduced. In addition, since the inflator 17 can be installed on the body side away from the hood airbag 15, it can be installed in a place where there is little heat effect from a heat source such as an engine, so that malfunction due to high temperature can be prevented.

In this embodiment, the hood 12
The case where the opening 13 is formed in the peripheral portion of the hood 12, the hood airbag 15 is attached inside the hood 12 near the opening 13, and the inflator 17 is attached on the body side near the opening 13 has been described. As shown in FIG. 4, an opening 22 is formed in the upper part of the fender 21 on one side of the front part of the vehicle body 11 and a hood airbag and an inflator are separately provided in the vicinity thereof, or as shown in FIG. As described above, the opening 24 is formed in the cowl portion 23 at the rear of the hood 12 of the vehicle body 11 and a hood airbag and an inflator are separately provided in the vicinity thereof, or, as shown in FIG. Even if the opening 26 is formed in the front end panel 25 in the front of the vehicle and the hood airbag and the inflator are separately provided in the vicinity thereof, the opening is different from the case of the present embodiment. The same effect can be obtained.

7 and 8 show a second embodiment of the present invention, in which the opening formed in the peripheral portion of the hood in the first embodiment is attached to the hood hinge so that the hood can be opened and closed. It has been opened near the above, and will be described below with reference to the drawings.

The hood airbag device of this embodiment is applied to a front opening type hood 32 of a vehicle body 31. The hood 32 has hood hinges 33 on both sides of the hood rear end portion.
Is mounted on the upper surface of the body-side cowl portion 34 so as to be vertically swingable. In the vicinity of the hood hinge 33 of the hood 32, an opening 35 is formed by cutting the hood 32 into a rectangular shape, and the opening 35 is openably closed by a lid 36.

Inside the opening 35, a folded hood airbag 37 is attached to the back side of the hood 32 while being housed in a case 38. Also, the inflator 3 for inflating the hood airbag 37
9 is attached to the front surface of the cowl portion 34 on the body side, and the inflator 39 and the hood airbag 3 are attached.
A non-expandable hose 40 having flexibility is connected to and communicates with 7.

Incidentally, in FIG. 7 and FIG.
1 is an engine, 42 is a windshield, and 43 is a suspension tower.

Next, the operation of this embodiment configured as described above will be explained. When a collision with a pedestrian is detected during running, the inflator 39 is detected by the inflator 39 as in the case of the first embodiment. A gas generated by the inflator 39 is supplied with the ignition current to the hood airbag 37 via the non-inflatable hose 40, and the hood airbag 37 expands.
Pushes the lid 36 open, swells from the opening 35, and expands so as to cover the hood 32. Therefore, the hood airbag 37 absorbs and alleviates the impact when the collided pedestrian is bounced and makes a secondary collision on the hood 32.

In this embodiment, an opening 35 is formed near the hood hinge 33, and the opening 35 is formed.
Inflator 39 on the body side near the
Since the hood airbag 37 is provided on the second side and a non-inflatable hose 40 is connected between the two, the distance change between the inflator 39 and the hood airbag 37 due to the opening / closing operation of the hood 32 is small, and therefore the non-inflation is caused. The handling length of the sex hose 40 can be shortened. Also,
Since the hood airbag 37 and the inflator 39 are separated from each other, the case 38 for housing the hood airbag 37 can be made thin, and a sufficient clearance with the engine 41 in the engine room and the upper end of the suspension tower 43 can be ensured. You can

FIG. 9 shows a rear opening type hood as a third embodiment of the hood airbag device according to the present invention. The rear opening type hood 52 has its front end portion (the left end in FIG. 9). Part) by the hood hinge 53,
It is attached to the upper portion of the radiator support member 54 on the body side so as to be vertically swingable. And hood 5
In the vicinity of the hood hinge 53 of No. 2, an opening 55 is formed by cutting the hood 52 into a rectangular shape, and the opening 55 is openably closed by a lid 56.

Therefore, in this way, the hood hinge 53
By forming the opening 55 in the vicinity of the above, the air bag 57 and the inflator 59 are separately installed and connected in communication with the non-inflatable hose 60, the same effect as the case of the second embodiment can be obtained. To be

FIG. 10 shows a fourth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, the rear end of the hood 72 is located near a hood hinge 73 attached to the body side. An opening 75 is formed by cutting the hood 72 into a rectangle. This opening 75 is the lid 7
A case 78 in which the hood airbag 77 is thinly folded and accommodated is provided inside the hood 72, with its open side facing the opening 75.
It is attached to the back of. The inflator 79 is attached to the front side (the left side in FIG. 10) of the cowl portion 74 on the body side near the opening 75.

A metal gas introduction pipe 81 having one end connected to the gas introduction portion 77a of the hood airbag 77 is installed on the back side of the hood 72 as a hood reinforcement serving as a hood reinforcing member. One end of a non-inflatable hose 80 from the inflator 79 is connected to the other end. In FIG. 10, reference numeral 8
2 is a heat insulating material provided on the surface of a metal gas introduction pipe 81 installed on the back side of the hood 72, and 83 is a suspension tower.

Therefore, in the hood airbag apparatus of this embodiment constructed as described above, when a collision with a pedestrian is detected during traveling, as in the case of the second embodiment,
An ignition current is applied to the inflator 79, and the gas generated in the inflator 79 is supplied to the hood airbag 77 from the non-inflatable hose 80 via the gas introduction pipe 81 installed in the hood 72. And hood airbag 7
7 expands and expands so as to cover the hood 72. Therefore, the hood airbag 77 effectively cushions the impact when the collided pedestrian is bounced and makes a secondary collision on the hood 72.

In this embodiment, a part of the pipe (gas introducing pipe 81) connecting the inflator 79 and the hood airbag 77 is installed on the back side of the hood 72, so that the hood 72 can also be used as a reinforcing material. Moreover, since the length of the flexible non-expandable hose 80 can be shortened,
This has the effect of reducing the risk of an operator being caught in the hose and disconnecting the hose connection or damaging the hose during maintenance work in the engine room.

In this embodiment, the case where a part of the pipe connecting the inflator 79 and the hood airbag 77 is installed on the back side of the hood 72 as the metal gas introduction pipe 81 has been described. Even if the non-expandable hose 80 is inserted into the hood reinforcement formed on the back surface of the hood 72, substantially the same effect can be obtained.

Further, FIG. 11 shows a fifth embodiment of the hood airbag device of the present invention. On the back side of the hood 92, a hood reinforcement 93 for increasing torsional rigidity is provided with an X shape and a T shape. It is formed in a predetermined combination pattern. The rear end of the hood 92 (see FIG.
1. On both side edges (on the lower side in FIG. 1), mounting brackets 91, 91 for hood hinges for mounting the hood 92 on the body side so as to be openable and closable are provided.
A pair of inflators 95, 9 are provided inside the vicinity of 1, 91.
5 are installed.

A semi-cylindrical hood airbag storage portion 96, which accommodates a hood airbag (not shown), is attached to the center of the back side of the hood 92. Hood reinforcing material / gas introducing pipes 94, 94 are provided between both ends and each of the inflators 95 to communicate with each other, and the front ends of the inflators 95 are opened to the front side (upper side in FIG. 11). Hood reinforcement and outside air introduction pipe 97, 97
Are attached along both side edges of the hood 92. In FIG. 11, reference numeral 98 is a hood lock reinforcement.

Next, the operation of this embodiment configured as described above will be described. The hood 92 has a high torsional rigidity due to the hood reinforcement 93 and the gas introduction pipe 94 and the outside air introduction pipe 97 which also serve as reinforcements. In addition, since the outside air for cooling is supplied to the inflator 95 by the outside air introduction pipe 97 that also functions as a reinforcing member during traveling, the inflator 95 is not heated by heat of the engine or the like, and malfunction of the inflator 95 due to high temperature occurs. To be prevented.

Further, FIGS. 12 to 15 show a sixth embodiment of the present invention. In each of the above embodiments, the inflator installed on the body side is installed on the hood side. Explain.

This hood airbag device is provided with a vehicle body 101.
The front opening type hood 102 is attached to both sides of the rear end portion of the hood 102 by a hood hinge (not shown) so as to be vertically swingable on the cowl portion on the body side. A recess 103 (see FIG. 13) is formed at the front end of the hood 102, and the airbag 10 is placed in the recess 103.
4 and the inflator 105 are housed integrally, and the lid 100 is openably closed.

On the back side of the hood 102, the hood 1
The hood reinforcement 106 having a mountain-shaped cross section for reinforcing the torsional rigidity of 02 is formed in a pattern in which the planar shape is a combination of the X-shape and the T-shape, and approximately the center in the vehicle body width direction is from the front end to the rear end of the hood 102. Two hood reinforcements 107, 107 penetrating in the front-rear direction are formed so as to pass through the back side of the recess 103, and the air passage 10 is provided in the hood reinforcements 107, 107.
8 is formed. Then, the inflator 105 housed in the recess 103 is provided in the air passage 108 of each hood reinforcement 107 formed through in the front-rear direction.
The lower end portion of is exposed and is cooled by the air flowing in the air passage 108 when the vehicle is traveling (see FIG. 13). The lower surfaces of the hood reinforcements 106 and 107 provided on the back side of the hood 102 are covered with a heat insulating material 109, respectively.

Next, the operation of this embodiment configured as described above will be explained. When a collision with a pedestrian is detected during traveling, the inflator 105 is operated as in the case of the second embodiment. Ignition current is applied and the gas generated by the inflator 105 is directly supplied to the hood airbag 104, and the inflating hood airbag 104 pushes the lid 100 open and bulges out of the opening to expand the hood 102. (See FIG. 14). Therefore, the hood airbag 104 absorbs and alleviates the impact when the collided pedestrian is bounced and makes a secondary collision with the hood 102.

Then, in this embodiment, the hood 1
The hood airbag 104 in the recess 103 near the front end of 02.
And the inflator 105 are integrally housed,
Since the lower surface side of the recess 103 accommodated is covered with the heat insulating material 109, the heat influence on the inflator 105 can be reduced, and the air passage 108 is formed inside the hood reinforcement 107, and one of the inflator 10 can be accommodated in the air passage 108. Since the inflator 105 is exposed, when the vehicle is traveling, the inflator 105 is cooled by the chimney effect of the air passage 108 and the air flow due to the blowing of the outside air due to the difference in traveling pressure. It is possible to prevent deterioration due to.

16 and 17 show a seventh embodiment of the present invention, in which a pair of inflators 1 is provided on the front side (left side in FIG. 17) of the cowl portion 118 on the vehicle body side.
15 (one is not shown) are provided separately on both sides in the vehicle width direction.

On the other hand, on the back side of the hood 112 at the front of the vehicle body, there is a hood reinforcement 1 for increasing the torsional rigidity.
11 is formed in a predetermined pattern. The hood 112 has hinge mounting fittings 113a, 113a provided on the rear end side (lower side in FIG. 16) attached to the upper surface side of the cowl portion 118 via the hood hinges 113 so as to be openable and closable. There is.

Further, a pair of air passages 117, 117, which are hollow in the front-rear direction, are installed on both sides of the back surface of the hood 112 in the vehicle width direction so as to also serve as the hood line hose 111. A heat insulating material 119 is applied to a predetermined thickness on the entire lower surface of the hood 112 including the outer surface of the passage 117.

Further, each of the air passages 117 has an air inlet 117a on the front end side of the hood (left end side in FIG. 17) and an outlet 117b on the rear end side of the hood. The air taken in from 117a blows out from the outlet 117b and blows against a pair of inflators 115 provided on the vehicle body side to cool them, thereby preventing malfunction due to high temperature and thermal deterioration of the inflator. There is.

Further, in the approximate center of the back surface of the hood 112,
A box-shaped airbag storage portion 116 that is long in the vehicle width direction is provided, and a hood airbag 114 is stored inside thereof. In addition, near the both ends of the air bag accommodating portion 116, one end is connected to the pair of inflators 115, and a flexible non-inflatable gas introduction hose 1 is provided.
The other end side of 10 is provided, and the other end of the gas introduction hose 110 is drawn into the air bag accommodating portion 116 and connected to both side ends of the hood air bag 114. In FIG. 17, reference numeral 120 is a suspension tower, and 121 is a windshield.

The gas generated by the inflator 115 is filled into the hood airbag 114 via the gas introduction hose 110 so that the hood airbag 114 expands.
The hood 1 bulges from an opening (not shown) formed in the hood 1.
12 and on the front of the windshield 121,
The impact on the pedestrian can be alleviated as in the case of the fifth and sixth embodiments.

[0046]

As described above, the hood airbag device of the present invention has an opening formed in the hood of the vehicle body or in the peripheral portion of the hood, and the airbag is attached to the inner surface of the hood.
By mounting the inflator on the body side and connecting the two with a gas introduction pipe, the inflator can be installed away from a heat source such as an engine. If the opening is formed near the hood hinge, the hose that connects the airbag and the inflator can be shortened. Further, if a part of the gas introducing pipe is installed in the hood reinforcement material, the exposed length of the gas introducing pipe can be shortened and the appearance can be improved. Furthermore, if the hood reinforcement material formed on the back surface of the hood is used as an outside air introduction path for cooling the inflator, it is possible to suppress the temperature rise of the inflator installed in the high temperature engine room.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a vehicle equipped with a hood airbag device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a developed state of the hood airbag of the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where an opening is formed in the upper part of the fender.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where an opening is formed on the upper surface of the cowl portion.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a case where an opening is formed in the front end panel.

FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view of a vehicle equipped with the hood airbag device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional side view showing the arrangement in the hood of the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a sectional side view of a hood airbag device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a sectional side view of a hood airbag device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic view showing the back surface of the hood of the hood airbag device according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a side view of a vehicle equipped with a hood airbag device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a sectional side view of the hood of the hood airbag device according to the sixth embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a side view showing a developed state of the hood airbag of the sixth embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing the back surface of the hood of the sixth embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a schematic view showing the back surface of the hood of the hood airbag device according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a sectional side view of the hood of the hood airbag device according to the seventh embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a schematic explanatory view of a vehicle equipped with a conventional pedestrian protection means.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11 Vehicle Body 12 Hood 13 Opening 15 Hood Airbag 17 Inflator 18 Gas Introducing Tube 19 Pedestrian Collision Detection Sensor 33 Hood Hinge 35 Opening 53 Hood Hood 81 Gas Introducing Tube 94 Hood Reinforcing Material and Gas Introducing 95 Inflator 96 Airbag Storage Part 97 Hood reinforcement and outside air introduction pipe 107 Hood reinforce 108 Air passage 117 Air passage 117b Outlet port

Front Page Continuation (72) Inventor Koichi Takeuchi 1 Toyota-cho, Toyota-shi, Aichi Prefecture Toyota Motor Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hiroki Ohara 2-chome, Asahi-cho, Kariya-shi, Aichi Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. ( 72) Inventor Naoji Sakakibara, Aichi Prefecture Kariya City, Asahi Town 2-chome Ichishin Seiki Co., Ltd.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A hood airbag device for deploying an airbag on a hood of a vehicle body by a gas generated by an inflator when a collision with a pedestrian is detected. The air bag is formed and an air bag is attached to the inner surface of the hood near the opening, and an inflator for inflating the air bag is attached to the body side near the opening so that the gas between the air bag and the inflator is reduced. A hood airbag device, which is connected through an introduction pipe. 2. The hood airbag apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the opening is formed in the vicinity of a hood hinge that attaches the hood to the body side so as to be openable and closable. 3. A hood airbag device for deploying an airbag on a hood of a vehicle body by a gas generated by an inflator when a collision with a pedestrian is detected. An airbag and an inflator for inflating the airbag are provided in the vicinity of the opening, and a gas introduction pipe connecting the airbag and the inflator for communication is provided on the rear surface of the hood. A hood airbag device that is installed on the material. 4. The hood airbag device according to claim 3, wherein the reinforcement member serves as an outside air introduction passage for cooling the inflator.