JPH09263210A - Structure of air bag door for compartment side member - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a new structure of an air bag door for a compartment side member without generating poor appearance such as cracks due to a deteriorated face, contraction at a predicted breaking part in forming the predicted thin breaking part on the skin face of a compartment side member, and positive breakage in inflating an air bag. SOLUTION: In the constitution of this compartment side member, a reinforcing plate 31 for air bag door rear face is installed on an opening part 22 for developing an air bag formed on a base material 21. A foaming material is laminated on the base material 21 and the reinforcing plate 31. The air bag door divided by a thin breaking part formed at the skin face for covering the top face of the foaming material is integrated. In this case, an X-shaped slit 32 is provided on the reinforcing plate 31. A bendable piece 33 is formed between the slits. The X-shaped breaking part is provided on the skin face matching the position of the slit position.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a structure of an airbag door of a vehicle interior side member.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Some vehicle compartment side members P such as an instrument panel shown in FIG. 12 have an airbag door D integrally formed therein. This product does not need to prepare the airbag door D as a separate body, and does not create a gap around the airbag door D due to variations in the dimensions of the airbag door D or variations during assembly, and has a good appearance. Is.

As an example of the vehicle cabin side member, as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, an air bag deployment opening O formed in a base material 74 made of hard resin or the like is reinforced on the back surface of the air bag door. A plate 75 is attached, a foam 71 is laminated on the base material 74 and the reinforcing plate 75, and a synthetic resin skin 72 covering the surface of the foam 71 is provided with a thin breakable portion 73 that partitions the airbag door D. Are formed.

The reinforcing plate 75 is made of a quadrangular iron plate or the like, and one side thereof is fixed to the edge of the opening O for expanding the airbag on the upper surface of the base material 74, and is not fixed by pressing the airbag A from below the reinforcing plate 75. The side can be bent upward. In addition, the thin portion 7 of the skin 72 to be broken
3 is formed by forming a cut or a V groove with a high-frequency welder, a hot blade, a cold press cutter, or the like after forming the skin 72. The to-be-broken portion 73 is aligned with the non-fixed side of the reinforcing plate 75. Reference numeral C in the figure indicates a case for storing the airbag,
I is an inflator (actuating device), 76 is a mounting member for fixing the air bag housing case C to the base member 74 and the reinforcing plate 75, and T is a rupture line of the foam 71 and is a virtual line.

In this structure, when the air bag A is actuated and inflated, the reinforcing plate 75 on the air bag deployment opening O is formed.
Is pushed by the airbag A and is bent upward, whereby the thin-walled breakable portion 73 of the foam 71 and the skin 72 is broken.
15 is stressed and broken, and the airbag door D is opened as shown in FIG. Reference numerals 73a and 73b are the divided epidermis 72.
The fractured portions of Ta and Tb represent the fractured portions of the foam 71. Then, with the opening of the airbag door D, the airbag A is deployed in the vehicle compartment.

By the way, the thin-walled breakable portion 73 for partitioning the airbag door D in the outer skin 72 is set to have a thickness of approximately 0.3 mm or less so that the breakable portion 73 can be reliably broken when the airbag is inflated. . However, in general, a member P on the vehicle interior side such as an instrument panel of an automobile
It is known that the outer skin 72 is deteriorated and contracted with the passage of time by being exposed to the sun rays entering the passenger compartment and the high heat inside the passenger compartment. Then, a thin breakable portion 7 of 0.3 mm or less is formed on the skin 72 of the passenger compartment member P.
In the case where No. 3 is formed, the influence of the deterioration and shrinkage of the skin 72 described above becomes the largest in the thin portion to be broken 73 having low strength, and as a result, the portion to be broken 73 is broken.
It has been pointed out that there is a problem in that a defective appearance is likely to occur, such as cracks in the inner surface or the foam 71 on the inside exposed.

In order to deal with this problem, the thickness of the skin 72 at the portion to be broken 73 is increased until the crack due to deterioration is less likely to occur. This time, the portion to be broken 73 is smoothly broken when the airbag A is inflated. There is a risk that it will not.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been proposed in view of the above problems, and in the case where a thin portion to be fractured is formed on the synthetic resin skin of the vehicle interior side member, the fracture is caused. It is an object of the present invention to provide a new structure of an airbag door of a vehicle interior side member that does not cause a defective appearance such as a crack due to deterioration or shrinkage of a skin at a predetermined portion, and further reliably breaks when the airbag is inflated. is there.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, a reinforcing plate for a back surface of an airbag door is attached to an opening for airbag deployment formed in a base material, and a foam is laminated on the base material and the reinforcing plate, In a vehicle interior side member integrally having an airbag door partitioned by a thin breakable portion formed on a synthetic resin skin covering the surface of the foam, the reinforcing plate is provided with an X-shaped or cross-shaped slit. According to the structure of the airbag door of the vehicle interior side member, a bendable piece is formed between the slits, and a thin portion of the outer skin to be broken is provided substantially above the slits.

According to the first aspect of the invention, when the airbag provided on the back side of the reinforcing plate of the passenger compartment member is inflated, the reinforcing plate is pushed upward, and the X of the reinforcing plate is pushed.
The bendable piece formed between the slits of the letter shape or the cross shape bends upward and tries to open in all directions from the intersection of the slit centers.

In this case, each piece formed between the slits of the reinforcing plate has a shape having an apex corresponding to the apex of a triangle at the tip (intersection side of the slit) since the slit is formed in an X shape or a cross shape. The tip of the tip bends upward while being positioned higher than the other portions. As a result, the pressing force of the foam and the skin by the piece of the reinforcing plate is concentrated on the tip of the piece of the reinforcing plate, and the minimum portion of the foam and the skin to be broken above the tip of the piece is concentrated. Since it is pressed, the fracture starts quickly at that portion, and the thin portion of the skin to be fractured smoothly breaks.

As described above, the thin-walled portion of the skin to be ruptured is easily and quickly ruptured because the pressing force due to the inflation of the air bag is concentrated on the portion, so that the thickness thereof can be set thicker than the conventional one and deteriorates. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of cracks on the epidermis due to shrinkage or shrinkage.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the thin-walled portion to be broken of the skin according to the first aspect has an X shape or a cross shape that matches the slit shape of the reinforcing plate, and is provided substantially along the slit of the reinforcing plate. It is characterized by that.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the center crossing portion (X-shaped cross section) of the thin-wall breakage portion of the skin is formed on the tip portion (crossing portion of the slit) formed between the slits of the reinforcing plate. Or cross-shaped intersection) will be located. Also,
The center crossing portion of the thin-walled fractured portions of the skin has the lowest strength because the thin-walled portions intersect.

Therefore, when the piece of the reinforcing plate bends upward, the center crossing portion having the lowest strength is concentrated at the tip end of the piece of the reinforcing plate through the foam at the thin portion of the skin to be broken. It will be pushed and will start breaking very easily and quickly. In addition, since the thin portion of the skin to be broken is formed substantially along the slit of the reinforcing plate, the peripheral edge (side) of the piece of the reinforcing plate formed between the slits and the thin portion of the skin to be broken. Are almost in agreement. Therefore, the pressing force of the peripheral portion of the piece caused by the upward bending of the piece is efficiently applied to the thin-walled breaking scheduled portion of the epidermis, and the rupture started from the center crossing portion of the thin-walled breaking scheduled portion of the epidermis immediately. Since it can be continuously generated along the thin portion to be broken, the foam and the skin can be broken more smoothly and the airbag door can be instantly opened into the vehicle compartment.

Further, according to the invention of claim 3, the tip of the bendable piece formed by the slit of the reinforcing plate or the edge of each piece sandwiching the tip and the slit is folded back to the front surface or the back surface side of the reinforcing plate. It is characterized by that. The invention of claim 3 is suitable when the reinforcing plate is made of metal. In the invention of claim 3, the piece formed between the slits and having the tip thereof folded back is preferable as the structure of the airbag door because the tip of the piece has no sharp portion. Further, in the case where the tip of the piece and the end edge of each piece that sandwiches the slit are folded back, there is no sharp portion that occurs at the peripheral edge of each piece when the slit is punched, so that it is particularly suitable as the structure of the airbag door. Is.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a passenger compartment member having the structure of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view showing the vicinity of an airbag door, FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 1, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the base material when the reinforcing plate is attached in the same embodiment, FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the base material after attaching the reinforcing plate in the same embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a cross section showing the time when the airbag inflates in the same embodiment. FIG. 7, FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing the airbag inflated, FIG. 8 is a partial perspective view showing the vicinity of the airbag door when the airbag is inflated, and FIG. 9 is a rear view of a reinforcing plate in another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along the line 10-10, and FIG.
FIG. 1 is a rear view of a reinforcing plate according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

The passenger compartment member 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 is
It is used as an instrument panel of an automobile, and has an airbag door 11 integrally. The passenger compartment member 10 includes a base material 21, a reinforcing plate 31, a foam 41, and a skin 45.

The base material 21 serves as a core material of the passenger compartment member 10, and is formed into a passenger compartment member by injection molding or the like from a hard resin such as polypropylene resin or hard vinyl chloride resin. . As will be better understood from FIG. 4, the base material 21 has an opening 22 for airbag deployment,
It is formed on the passenger seat side. As shown in FIG. 7, the airbag deployment opening 22 is for allowing the airbag A of the airbag device provided on the back side of the vehicle interior side member 10 to be deployed in the vehicle interior. It is formed in a size that matches the opening of the bag storage case C.
The reinforcing plate 3 is provided at the periphery of the airbag deployment opening 22.
1 and a plurality of fixing holes 23 for the airbag accommodating case C are formed.

The reinforcing plate 31 constitutes the back surface of the airbag door 11 so as to quickly open the airbag door 11 when the airbag is inflated.
As will be better understood from the above, it is made of a metal plate such as an iron plate or made of resin, and is mounted on the substrate 21 so as to close the opening 22 for expanding the airbag. The reinforcing plate 31 of this embodiment is a quadrangle larger than the airbag deployment opening 22 by a predetermined amount. An X-shaped slit 32 is formed along the diagonal of the reinforcing plate 31, and the foldable piece 3 formed by the slit 32 is formed.
There are 4 pieces of 3 between the slits 32. The slit 32 may have a cross shape obtained by rotating the X shape by a predetermined angle. The length of the slit 32 is determined in consideration of the size of the reinforcing plate 31, the easiness of deploying the airbag, and the like. Reference numeral 35 is a bolt that is provided upright on the edge on the back side of the reinforcing plate 31 and is inserted into the fixing hole 23 formed in the peripheral edge of the airbag deployment opening 22 of the base material 21. As shown in FIG. It is screwed.

The foam 41 imparts a cushioning property to the surface side of the passenger compartment member 10, and is made of synthetic resin foam such as urethane foam. The skin 45 is the passenger compartment member 1
It is made of synthetic resin and is made of a synthetic resin sheet such as soft vinyl chloride resin. The outer skin 45 is formed on the outer shape of the passenger compartment member 10 by powder slush molding, vacuum molding, or the like, and the thin portion to be broken 4 that partitions the airbag door 11 on the back surface thereof.
6 is formed as a V-shaped groove by a hot blade or the like.
In the case where the skin 45 is a powder slush molded product, the thin portion to be broken 46 may be formed during the powder slush molding.

The thin portion of the skin to be broken 46 in this embodiment has an X-shape that matches the shape of the slit 32 of the reinforcing plate 31, and is substantially along the slit 32 so as to be aligned with the slit 32. Is formed. Therefore, the thin-walled breakable portion 46 of the skin is the peripheral edge 3 of the piece 33 formed between the slits 32 of the reinforcing plate 31.
3a, and moreover, the central crossing portion 47 of the thin portion to be broken 46 is located on the tip 34 of the piece 33 of the reinforcing plate 31. The skin 45 of this embodiment has a thickness of 2 mm.
Of the soft vinyl chloride resin sheet described above, the thin portion 46 to be broken has a thickness of 0.5 mm. In addition, when the slit 32 of the reinforcing plate 31 has a cross shape, the thin portion to be broken 46 of the skin has a cross shape in accordance with the cross shape.

In the molding of the passenger compartment member 10 of this embodiment, the base material 21 in the state where the reinforcing plate 31 is arranged in the opening portion 22 for deploying the airbag is arranged in the foam molding die together with the skin 45. This can be easily performed by injecting a foaming raw material between the base material 21 and the skin 45 and forming the foam body 41 integrally with the base material 21, the reinforcing plate 31, and the skin 45.

As shown in FIG. 3, the passenger compartment member 10 thus constructed uses the bolt 35 on the edge of the reinforcing plate 31 and the nut 36 screwed with the bolt 35, and the back side of the airbag door 11 is air-sealed. It is fixed to the bag storage case C. When the vehicle is impacted by the collision, the inflator I in the airbag housing case C is activated to inflate the airbag A, and the reinforcing plate 31 on the back surface of the airbag door 11 is pushed upward. Due to the pressing force, the piece 33 formed between the slits 32 of the reinforcing plate 31 bends upward from the tip 34, and pushes the foam 41 and the skin 45 upward. At this time, since the slit 32 of the reinforcing plate and the thin breakable portion 46 of the outer skin 45 both have an X shape and the positions thereof are vertically aligned, the tip 34 of the piece 33 of the reinforcing plate 31 causes the foam 41 to move. Also, the crossing portion 47 of the thin-walled to-be-ruptured portion 46 of the epidermis is intensively pressed, and the breaking is promptly started as shown in FIG. Moreover, the thin-walled breakage portion 46 of the epidermis
The crossing portion 47 is a portion having the lowest strength because the thin wall portions intersect each other, and is extremely easily and quickly broken.
The reference numeral 47a is the intersection 4 of the thin-walled to-be-ruptured portion 46 of the epidermis.
7 represents the fractured part.

The foam 41 and the skin 45, which have started to break, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, have a thin portion to be broken as the piece 33 between the slits 32 of the reinforcing plate 31 bends upward. The airbag door 11 is torn along the line 46 and is opened into the passenger compartment. At this time, as described above, the peripheral edge 33a of the reinforcing plate piece 33 and the skin 45
Since it is aligned with the thin portion to be broken 46, the breaking force efficiently acts on the thin portion to be broken 46 of the skin 45, and the airbag door 11 is opened promptly.

FIG. 9 shows the back surface of another example of the reinforcing plate in the structure of the present invention, and FIG. 10 is a 10-10 sectional view thereof. In the reinforcing plate 51 in this embodiment, an X-shaped slit 52 is formed of an iron plate, and the tip 54 of each piece 53 formed by the slit 52 is folded back. According to this embodiment, the reinforcing plate 5
By folding back the tip 54 of the piece 53 of No. 1,
3 Since there is no sharp portion at the tip, it is preferable as a member forming an airbag door. The reinforcing plate 51 is used instead of the reinforcing plate 31 shown in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 8.

Further, when the reinforcing plate in the structure of the present invention is made of metal, each piece 63 formed by the slit 62 is not only the tip 64 but also the slit 62 as in the reinforcing plate 61 shown in FIG. The end edge 65 of each piece 63 sandwiching may also be folded back to the back side or front side of each piece 63. In that case, a sharp portion formed on the peripheral edge of each piece 63 at the time of punching out the slits 62 is formed by each of the pieces 6.
Since the corners are rounded by folding back the tip 64 of 3 and the edge 65 of each piece 63, it is particularly suitable as a member constituting an airbag door.

In the above description, as an example in which the highest effect is obtained, the thin-walled portion of the skin that is to be broken has an X-shape or a cross shape that matches the slit shape of the reinforcing plate. The part to be fractured is not limited to that. For example, a thin portion of the skin to be broken may be in a straight line shape that is aligned with one side of the slit of the reinforcing plate. In that case, even if the effect obtained by the X-shape or the cross shape is not reached, the breaking effect by the tip of the reinforcing plate piece can be obtained, so that the thickness of the thin portion of the skin to be broken can be set thicker than the conventional one. .

[0029]

As shown and described above, according to the structure of the present invention, it is possible to efficiently apply a pressing force to a portion of the skin where the thin skin is to be broken when the airbag is inflated, so that the thin skin is broken. Even if the planned part is set thicker than before, it can be broken smoothly and surely. Therefore, the thin portion of the skin to be broken can be made thick enough to prevent cracking due to deterioration, shrinkage, or the like, thereby improving the appearance of the airbag door portion.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a cabin-side member having the structure of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view showing the vicinity of the airbag door.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a base material when a reinforcing plate is attached in the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the base material after the reinforcing plate is attached in the same embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing the start of airbag inflation in the same embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing when the airbag is inflated.

FIG. 8 is a partial perspective view showing the vicinity of the airbag door when the airbag is inflated.

FIG. 9 is a back view of a reinforcing plate according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along line 10-10 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a rear view of a reinforcing plate according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a vehicle interior side member integrally including a conventional general airbag door.

FIG. 13 is a sectional view taken along line 13-13 of FIG.

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing a part of FIG. 13 in an enlarged manner.

15 is a cross-sectional view showing the airbag of FIG. 12 when inflated.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Vehicle Side Member 11 Airbag Door 21 Base Material 22 Airbag Deployment Opening 31 Reinforcement Plate 32 Slit 33 Reinforcing Plate Piece 41 Foam 45 Skin Skin 46 Thin Wall Breakage Area 51 Reinforcement Plate 53 Reinforcing Plate Piece 54 Reinforcement The tip of a piece of board

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A reinforcing plate for a back surface of an airbag door is attached to an opening for airbag deployment formed in a base material, and a foam is laminated on the base material and the reinforcing plate to cover the surface of the foam. In a vehicle interior side member integrally having an airbag door partitioned by a thin planned breaking portion formed on a synthetic resin covering to cover, a reinforcing member is provided with an X-shaped or cruciform slit and is bent between the slits. The structure of the airbag door of the vehicle interior side member is characterized in that a possible piece is formed, and a thin scheduled breakage portion of the skin is provided substantially above the slit. 2. The thin-walled portion to be broken of the skin according to claim 1, which is formed in an X shape or a cross shape that matches the slit shape of the reinforcing plate, and is provided substantially along the slit of the reinforcing plate. The structure of the airbag door of the vehicle interior side member. 3. The reinforcing member according to claim 1, wherein the tip of the bendable piece formed between the slits of the reinforcing plate or the edge of each piece sandwiching the tip and the slit is directed to the front surface or the back surface side of the reinforcing plate. The structure of the airbag door of the vehicle interior side member which is folded back.