JPH10203283A - Air bag device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To control the developing movement of an air bag by a compact air bag device including the air bag and an inflator housed in a case. SOLUTION: An inflator 4 is disposed in the uppr side of a case 2, a folded air bag 3 is disposed in the lower side thereof, a gas blow-out port 51 is provided in the upper surface side of the inflator 4, and the end part 32a of the bag upper surface part of the air bag 3 developed in shape in the case 2 side is disposed through the occupant side passage 7 of the inflator 4 to cover the gas blow-out port 51. At the time of vehicle clashing, the end part 32a of the bag upper surface part is expanded by gas blown out from the gas blow-out port 51 and, by this expansion, the folded part 31 of the air bag 3 is passed through the passage 7 and sequentially pulled out from the bag upper surface side. Thus, by holding the expanded state of the developing air bag 3 by an inner pressure from the initial time development, developing is completed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an airbag device which is a device for protecting a passenger in a vehicle or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, an airbag device includes a case disposed in a front portion of a vehicle body such as an instrument panel and a center portion of a steering wheel, and an airbag stored in a folded state in the case. And an inflator, which is a gas generator, such that when the vehicle collides, the gas generated by the inflator inflates and deploys to the occupant side, thereby receiving the occupant's body.

In such an airbag apparatus, there are conventionally two types of arrangements for accommodating the inflator and the airbag in the case, such as the type shown in FIG. 6 and the type shown in FIG.

In the arrangement shown in FIG. 6, a cylindrical inflator 102 is disposed on a lower side of a case 101 opening upward, and an airbag 103 is accommodated on an upper side.

In the arrangement shown in FIG. 7, a cylindrical inflator 102 is disposed on the front side of the vehicle, that is, on the opposite side of the occupant, and the airbag 103 is stored on the rear side of the vehicle, that is, on the occupant side. Have been.

[0006]

In the arrangement shown in FIG. 6, since the airbag 103 and the inflator 102 are arranged vertically, the opening area of the case 101 can be reduced. It is not easy to control the deployment behavior of the airbag 103 since the entire airbag 103 is pushed out from the initial stage of deployment by the gas generated from the airbag.
That is, in the initial stage of deployment, the airbag 103 is not in a state of being stretched due to the internal pressure, and the deployment behavior is affected by the flow of gas generated by the inflator.

On the other hand, in the arrangement shown in FIG. 7, since the inflator 102 and the airbag 103 are disposed in front and behind, the airbag 103 can be deployed from the upper surface by the gas generated by the inflator 102. Since the opening area of the case 101 is large, there are many restrictions on mounting on a vehicle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an airbag device which can control the deployment behavior of the airbag while being compact.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an airbag device having a case disposed on a vehicle body so as to open upward, and an airbag stored in a folded state in the case. An airbag apparatus comprising: a bag; and an inflator disposed in the case and configured to expand and inflate the airbag toward an occupant. In the airbag device, the inflator is disposed on an upper side of the case, and the fold is disposed on a lower side. The airbag is arranged, a gas outlet is provided on the upper surface side of the inflator, and a case-side end of one surface portion in the deployed shape of the airbag is arranged to cover this gas outlet, The folded airbag is sequentially deployed and inflated from the one surface by the gas blown from the gas outlet.

In this airbag device, gas is blown from a gas outlet provided on the upper surface side of the inflator to a case-side end of one surface portion of the airbag disposed so as to cover the gas outlet. You. As a result, the end starts to inflate, and the folded airbag disposed on the lower side of the case is sequentially deployed and inflated from one surface of the airbag toward the occupant. Therefore, from the beginning of the deployment of the airbag,
The deployment can be completed while the deployed airbag is maintained in a tensioned state by the internal pressure. Further, in this airbag device, since the inflator and the airbag are arranged vertically, the opening area of the case can be reduced. As described above, the deployment behavior of the airbag can be controlled while being compact.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the airbag apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein a passage for deploying the airbag is formed on the occupant side of the inflator, and the one surface portion of the airbag has an airbag deployment shape. , Wherein an end of the upper surface of the bag on the case side is arranged to cover the gas outlet from the folded portion of the airbag through the passage.

In this airbag device, the case-side end of the upper surface of the bag starts to inflate by the gas blown from the gas outlet. Since this end is connected to the folded portion of the airbag housed below the passage through the passage formed on the occupant side of the inflator, the folded portion of the airbag is moved by the inflation of the end. The bag is sequentially pulled out from the upper surface side of the bag, whereby the bag is sequentially expanded and bulged from the upper surface portion of the bag.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the gas outlet is provided in a diffuser that covers the inflator.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the airbag device according to the third aspect, the case-side end of the upper surface of the bag is locked to the case or the diffuser on the side opposite to the occupant from the gas outlet. It is characterized by.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an airbag device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an airbag device 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing an assembled state of the airbag device 1.

The airbag device 1 includes a case 2 disposed on an upper surface of an instrument panel in front of a passenger seat of an automobile and having an upward opening, and an airbag folded and stored in the case 2. 3, a cylindrical inflator 4 serving as a gas generator, and a diffuser 5 for rectifying the flow of gas generated by the inflator 4. Then, at the time of a vehicle collision, the airbag 3 is deployed to the rear side of the vehicle by the gas generated by the inflator 4, thereby receiving the occupant's body. Note that reference numeral 6
Is a cover that covers the case opening 21 and is configured to open by the inflation pressure of the airbag 3.

The case 2 is a metal box-shaped container having a rectangular opening 21, and is formed in a shape slightly inclined downward toward the front of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 2, a mounting opening 22 for the inflator 4 is formed on one side in the width direction of the case 2. A fixing hole 23 for fixing the inflator 4 is provided on a side surface opposite to the fixing hole 23.

The inflator 4 is housed on the upper side of the case 2, that is, on the opening side, with its axial direction facing the vehicle width direction. The inflator 4 is disposed slightly closer to the front of the vehicle, that is, to the opposite side of the occupant from the center of the case 2 in the front-rear direction. Thereby, a passage 7 is formed between the occupant side wall of the case 2 and the entire width of the case 2. The inflator 4 is of a hybrid type in which high-pressure gas is sealed, and as shown in FIG. 2, a gas ejection portion 41 is provided at one end in the axial direction. In addition, a flange 42 is provided at the tip of the gas ejection portion 41 to be in contact with the peripheral portion of the mounting opening 22 of the case 2. The other end of the inflator 4 is provided with a bolt 43 inserted into the fixing hole 23 of the case 2.

The diffuser 5 is a cylindrical member made of metal and has an outer diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the inflator 4 and is arranged so as to cover the entire outer periphery of the inflator 4. A plurality of gas outlets 51 that open toward the case opening 21 are provided on the upper part of the diffuser 5. The gas outlet 51 is provided only on the upper side of the diffuser 5, and is not provided on the lower side.

In detail, the passage 7 is provided with a diffuser 5
Is formed between the diffuser 5 and the side wall of the occupant of the case 2, and its longitudinal dimension is set sufficiently smaller than the longitudinal dimension of the case opening 21.

The airbag 3 is a bag body having a mounting opening 34 sewn three-dimensionally with a synthetic fiber woven cloth or the like, and this opening 34 is opened by a rivet or the like via the bag retainer 8. It is attached to the inner peripheral side of the part 21. The folded portion 31 of the airbag 3 is stored below the inflator 4, that is, below the case 2. Then, the end 32a of the bag upper surface 32 on the case 2 side in the deployed shape of the airbag 3 (that is, the bag shape when deployment is completed (see FIG. 3D)) is pulled out from the folded portion 31, and It is arranged so as to pass through the passage 7 and cover the gas outlet 51 of the diffuser 5. The end 32a is attached to the side wall surface of the case opening 21 opposite to the occupant. On the other hand, the end portion 33a on the case 2 side of the bag lower surface portion 33 in the deployed shape of the airbag 3
Is pulled out of the folded portion 31 of the airbag 3, passes through the passage 7, and is attached to the occupant side wall surface of the case opening 21.

The airbag 3 is folded in such a structure that the airbag 3 is sequentially deployed from the bag upper surface 32. Here, as shown in the figure, the airbag 3 is folded in a bellows shape in the vertical direction. That is, the folding pieces are sequentially folded from the bag upper surface portion 32 to the bag lower surface portion 33 so as to be stacked.

When assembling the airbag device 1,
As shown in FIG. 2, the airbag 3 folded into a predetermined shape is stored in the bottom of the case 2. And inflator 4
Is inserted into the diffuser 5 to integrate them, and this is inserted from the mounting opening 22 of the case 2. Then, the bolt 43 of the inflator 4 protruding outward from the fixing hole 23 is fixed with a nut, and the flange 42 of the inflator 4 is fixed to the periphery of the mounting opening 22 of the case 2 by welding or the like.
The opening 34 of the airbag 3 is connected to the mounting hole 24 provided in the case opening 21 through the bag retainer 8.
Attach it with rivets.

In the airbag device 1, gas blown from the gas blowout portion 41 of the inflator 4 at the time of a vehicle collision, as shown in FIG. End 3 on case 2 side
It is blown out to 2a. Thereby, the bag upper surface portion 32
3a begins to expand, and as shown in FIG.
The door 6 opens due to the expansion pressure. When the end portion 32a of the bag upper surface portion 32 expands, the folded portion 3 of the airbag 3 connected to the end portion 32a is formed.
3 is drawn out from the bottom of the case 2 through the passage 7 as shown in FIG. At that time, the airbag 3
The folded portion 31 at the bottom of the case 2 is sequentially pulled out from the bag upper surface portion 32 side while being held in a stretched state by the internal pressure at the portion that has protruded outward from the case 2. Then, as shown in FIG.
The unfolding is completed at the stage where all the folded portions 31 at the bottom of are drawn out.

As described above, from the initial stage of deployment, the airbag 3 is sequentially deployed and inflated from the bag upper surface portion 32 while maintaining the deployed airbag 3 under the internal pressure, thereby completing the deployment. . Therefore, extra airbag 3
Thus, the airbag 3 can be smoothly deployed without elongation or behavior, and a good deployment behavior can be obtained.

Since the inflator 4 and the airbag 3 are arranged vertically, the opening area of the case 2 does not become too large as in the conventional type shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the present invention.

This embodiment is different from the above-described embodiment in that the case 2 is configured as a two-part upper and lower case. That is, the case 2 is formed by the lower bag storage section 2 a that stores the airbag 3 and the upper inflator storage section 2 b that stores the inflator 4.
An outer peripheral flange 25a protruding outward is provided at an upper end of the bag storage portion 2a, and an outer peripheral flange 25b protruding outward is provided at a lower end of the inflator storage portion 2b.

In this airbag device, the airbag 3 is stored in a folded state in the bag storage section 2a, and the inflator 4 and the diffuser 5 are stored in the inflator storage section 2b.
Then, the airbag device can be assembled by placing the inflator housing portion 2b on the bag housing portion 2a, overlapping the flanges 25a and 25b on each other, and fixing them with bolts and nuts. At this time, the opening portion 34 of the airbag 3 is drawn upward, and the drawn portion is passed through a passage 7 provided on the occupant side of the diffuser 5 to assemble the inflator storage portion 2b. 34
Is fixed to the inner surface of the upper end of the inflator housing 2b.

By dividing the case 2 into the bag storage section 2a and the inflator storage section 2b, the inflator 4 is provided at the upper part of the case 2 and the airbag 3 is provided at the lower part.
Is easy to assemble.

FIG. 5 shows an airbag device according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

In this embodiment, the end 33a of the lower surface 33 of the airbag 3 on the case 2 side is
Without being fixed to the side wall surface of the occupant, the upper portion 32 is pulled out from the folded portion 31 at the bottom of the case 2 along the side wall surface opposite to the occupant of the case 2 and connected to the end 32a of the bag upper surface portion 32 on the case 2 side. That is, the airbag 3 is disposed so as to surround the diffuser 5.
The bag retainer 8 is provided on the side wall surface of the case opening 21 opposite to the occupant.
It is locked by.

Even with this configuration, from the initial stage of deployment of the airbag 3, the inflated airbag 3 is sequentially deployed and inflated from the bag upper surface 32 while maintaining the inflated airbag 3 in a state of being tensioned by the internal pressure. Can be reached.

In each of the above embodiments, the end 32a of the bag upper surface 32 is locked to the case 2. However, if the gas outlet 51 is on the side opposite to the occupant, the diffuser 5 It may be locked.

In each of the above embodiments, the case where the diffuser 5 is provided has been described. However, the diffuser 5 uses a so-called hybrid type having a gas ejection part 41 at one end in the axial direction as the inflator 4. This is particularly effective in cases. In the case of using a type having a gas ejection portion over the entire axial direction as the inflator 4, the gas ejection portion is connected to the inflator 4.
Is provided on the upper surface of the diffuser 5, the diffuser 5 operates in the same manner as the gas outlet 51 of the diffuser 5 described above. In this case, the diffuser 5 is not essential.

In the above description, the diffuser 5 is supported on the left and right side surfaces of the case 2. However, the diffuser 5 may be fixed to the side wall surface of the case 2 opposite the occupant by a bolt and nut.

The present invention is not limited to the airbag device for the passenger seat, but is also applicable to other airbag devices for the driver's seat.

[0039]

According to the airbag device of the present invention, the deployment behavior of the airbag can be controlled while being compact.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an airbag device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the airbag device.

FIGS. 3A to 3D are schematic cross-sectional views showing deployment behavior of an airbag in the airbag device.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of an airbag device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of an airbag device according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of a conventional airbag device.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view of another conventional airbag device.

[Description of Signs] 1 ... Airbag device 2 ... Case 21 ... Case opening 3 ... Airbag 31 ... Folded portion 32 ... Bag upper surface 32a ... Case-side end of bag upper surface 4 ... Inflator 5 ... diffuser 51 ... gas outlet 7 ... passage

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A case disposed on a vehicle body so as to open upward, an airbag stored in a folded state in the case, and an airbag disposed in the case, and An inflator that expands and inflates the inflator, wherein the inflator is disposed on an upper side of the case, the folded airbag is disposed on a lower side, and gas is disposed on an upper side of the inflator. An air outlet is provided, and an end on the case side of one surface portion in the deployed shape of the airbag is disposed so as to cover the gas outlet, and the folded air is blown by the gas blown out from the gas outlet. An airbag device wherein a bag is sequentially deployed and inflated from the one surface portion. 2. A passage for deploying the airbag is formed on the occupant side of the inflator, wherein the one surface portion of the airbag is a bag upper surface portion in an airbag deployment shape. 2. The airbag device according to claim 1, wherein an end on the case side is arranged to cover the gas outlet from the folded portion of the airbag through the passage. 3. 3. The airbag device according to claim 1, wherein the gas outlet is provided in a diffuser that covers the inflator. 4. The case-side end of the upper surface of the bag,
4. The gas outlet is locked to the case or the diffuser on the side opposite to the occupant.
The airbag device as described in the above.