JPH11321513A - Air bag type occupant crash protection device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air bag type occupant crash protection device provided with a lid of high assembly workability. SOLUTION: This an air bag type occupant crash protection device 1 has a gas generating inflator 2, air bag 5 inflated by a pressure of gas generated by the inflator 2, and a retainer 4 fixed to a car body for storing the air bag 5, and has the air bag 5 inflated in a car interior by pushing away a lid from an opening 7a of an instrument panel 7 closed ordinarily by the lid 6 in the case that a deceleration speed exceeding a prescribed value acts on a vehicle. The retainer 4, in each of its mutually opposed wall surface, is provided with a hook part 12, the lid is provided with a plurality of engaging pieces 13 having respectively a hole 14 for engaging with the hook part, and the hook part and the engaging piece are engaged with each other by elastically deforming at least either of these hook part or engaging piece. In this way, mounting work of the lid relating to the instrument panel can be simplified.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an airbag type occupant protection device for protecting an occupant from an impact at the time of a vehicle collision.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Due to the deceleration at the time of collision of a vehicle, a force for moving the vehicle forward acts on an occupant. When the occupant actually moves by this force, there is a possibility that the occupant may hit a front window or a structure in the vehicle compartment. As an occupant protection device for preventing damage due to such a secondary collision, an occupant protection device including an airbag that is inflated by gas pressure is known.

[0003] In particular, an airbag-type occupant protection device provided on the passenger seat side is installed in the space inside the instrument panel, and in the event of a collision, the airbag is directed toward the passenger compartment from an opening provided at an appropriate position in the instrument panel. Are configured to swell (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-198547).
Reference).

By the way, the opening of the instrument panel for inflating the airbag into the passenger compartment is covered with a lid which can be easily broken. This lid has been disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 4-27639. As described above, there are known a type fixed to a retainer containing a gas generating inflator and an airbag, and a type fixed directly to an instrument panel or via a frame.

[0005]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional lid mounting structure, the former has a problem that the adjustment of the mating surface between the instrument panel and the lid is troublesome, and the latter has a problem. However, there is a problem that assembly is troublesome.

[0006] The present invention has been devised to solve such problems of the prior art, and its main objects are as follows.
An object of the present invention is to provide an airbag-type occupant protection device having a lid with high assembling workability.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, there is provided a gas inflator 2 and an airbag 5 which is inflated by a gas pressure generated by the inflator.
And a retainer 4 fixed to the vehicle body to house the airbag, and when the deceleration exceeding a predetermined value acts on the vehicle, the instrument panel 7 normally closed by the lid 6 An airbag-type occupant protection device 1 in which the lid is pushed out from an opening 7a so that the airbag inflates into a vehicle cabin. The lid is provided with a plurality of engagement pieces 13 each having a hole 14 to engage with the hook part, and the hook part and the engagement piece are at least one of them. Are elastically deformed and engage with each other.

According to such a configuration, when the lid is pushed in so as to cover the opening of the instrument panel, one of the engaging piece provided on the lid and the hook provided on the retainer is elastically deformed. Then, the free end of the engagement piece gets over the hook portion. Then, when the hook portion and the hole of the engaging piece are aligned with each other, the protruding end of the hook portion is received in the hole, and the engaging piece and the hook portion are restored to their original shapes, and the two are engaged with each other. .

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to specific embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, an airbag device 1 constructed according to the present invention has an inflator 2 for generating gas by a signal based on a sudden deceleration generated at the time of a vehicle collision, and the entire inflator 2. , An air retainer 4 connected to the upper part of the lower retainer 3, an airbag 5 in the form of a nylon bag housed in a state of being folded inside the air retainer 4, and an air retainer 4. It comprises a lid 6 that closes the upper opening, and is attached to the internal space of the portion of the instrument panel 7 corresponding to the passenger seat.

The airbag device 1 instantaneously inflates the airbag 5 by a gas pressure generated by igniting a gas generating agent such as sodium nitride, and inflates an occupant moving forward in the event of a vehicle collision. It is intended to be received by the bag 5, and there is basically no change in the operation procedure from a similar device known in the art, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The lower retainer 3 has a cylindrical shape whose both ends in the axial direction are closed, and houses the inflator 2 therein. The upper surface of the lower retainer 3 has a plurality of blast holes 8 for discharging gas generated by the inflator 2.
Is formed, and a flat sealing surface 9 having an appropriate width is formed so as to surround the entire periphery of the portion provided with the blast holes 8. In addition, the surface along the longitudinal direction of the sealing surface 9 is inclined so that the lower side expands when viewed from the axial direction.

The horizontal retainer 4 has a rectangular cross section, a substantially trapezoidal cross section as viewed from the axial direction, and has open upper and lower surfaces. A flange 10 corresponding to the sealing surface 9 of the lower retainer 3 is formed at the lower open end.

The lower retainer 3 and the upper retainer 4
Means that the airbag 5 is located between the sealing surface 9 and the flange 10.
And an appropriate fastener means 11 such as a bolt / nut or a blind rivet.

A plurality of hook members 12 are fixed to the outer surfaces of a pair of side walls of the retainer 4 facing each other at appropriate intervals. At a position corresponding to these hook members 12 on the inner surface of the lid 6, a plurality of resiliently deformable engaging pieces 13 provided with vertically long holes 14 that engage with the hook members 12 are protruded. Have been. At the center of the inner surface of the lid 6 in the front-rear direction, a thin portion 15 extending in the vehicle width direction is formed. Have been. On the other hand, when a downward force is applied to the lid 6, the lower end of the hook member 12 interferes with the lower end of the resilient engagement piece 13 on the inner surface of the lid and defines a downward displacement amount of the lid 6. The protrusion 12a is formed by bending outward.

When the lid 6 is mounted on the airbag device 1 having such a configuration, the airbag device 1 is attached to a stiffener member (not shown) provided at a portion of the vehicle body located inside the instrument panel 7. Is fixed in advance, and the opening 7a of the instrument panel 7 is fixed.
Push the lid 6 over it. Then, while the engaging piece 13 of the lid 6 elastically deforms outward, it goes over the hook member 12 provided on the outer surface of the side wall of the applicator 4, and when the hook member 12 and the elongated hole 14 are aligned, the engaging piece 13 is moved. The hook member 12 is restored to its original shape, and the protruding end of the hook member 12 is received in the elongated hole 14. At the same time, the pawl 16 is hooked on the inner edge of the opening 7a, and the position of the lid 6 with respect to the instrument panel 7 is determined. At this time, the lid 6 is provided with a gap between the hook member 12 and the engagement piece 13 and the elongated hole 14.
Can be easily adjusted even if there is a relative error between the airbag device 1 and the instrument panel 7 with respect to the mounting position with respect to the vehicle body. .

The procedure for mounting the lid 6 is not limited to the above. For example, the engaging piece 13 of the lid 6 is previously engaged with the hook member 12 of the apparel retainer 4, and
Next, the airbag device 1 is first inserted into the opening 7a of the instrument panel 7, and the claw 16 of the lid 6 is inserted into the opening 7a.
To be engaged. Thus, the airbag device 1 and the instrument panel 7 are subassembled via the lid 6. The airbag device 1 and the instrument panel 7 are mounted on a mounting portion (not shown) provided on the vehicle body.
May be individually attached.

When the gas generated in response to the signal of the deceleration detecting means (not shown) is blown into the airbag 5 which is normally housed in the folded-up retainer 4 inside the folded state, It breaks through the lid 6 and swells instantly into the vehicle interior. Here, if the claw 16 is easily deformed by an impact load from the inside, for example, as shown in FIG. Since there is the gap shown, the lid 6 rises from the upper surface of the instrument panel 7 by receiving the inflation force of the airbag 5. As a result, a gap G is generated between the inner edge of the opening 7 a of the instrument panel 7 and the outer edge of the lid 6. Therefore, when the lid 6 is torn from the thin portion 15 and deployed, interference between the front and rear edges of the lid 6 and the inner edge of the opening 7a is avoided, and the input load to the instrument panel 7 is reduced.

Even when the pawl 16 is not deformed, the engaging portion between the inner edge of the opening 7a of the instrument panel 7 and the pawl 16 functions as a hinge, so that the opening 16a of the instrument panel 7 cannot be moved. The lid 6 can be deployed without exerting any force.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Parts corresponding to those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description is omitted.

In the second embodiment, the accommodating portion 21 of the inflator 2 and the accommodating portion 22 of the airbag 5 are configured as a substantially integral main retainer 23,
The inflator housing 21 and the airbag housing 22 are separated from each other by a mid retainer 24 formed of a member separate from the main retainer 23.

The mid retainer 24 is formed by bending both ends of a rectangular flat plate obliquely downward along the longitudinal direction, and has a plurality of blowing holes 8 for blowing gas generated by the inflator 2 into the airbag housing 22. A flat sealing surface 9 having an appropriate width similar to the upper surface of the lower retainer 3 of the first embodiment is formed all around the portion where the blast holes 8 are provided at the center thereof. Have been.

The horizontal cross section of the main retainer 23 is rectangular, the vertical cross section of the lower inflator receiving section 21 is substantially U-shaped, and the vertical cross section of the upper airbag receiving section 22 is substantially trapezoidal. I have. The upper surface is opened, and the intermediate portion between the two accommodating portions is constricted, and a seal surface 25 corresponding to the seal surface 9 of the mid retainer 24 is formed on the inner surface.

When assembling the airbag device 1 of the second embodiment, first, the mid-retainer 24 is inserted into the inflator housing 21 from the upper opening of the main retainer 23 with the inflator 2 not mounted on the inflator housing 21. Insert it at an angle. Next, the mouth of the airbag 5 is similarly inserted from the upper opening, and the opening end 5a is sandwiched between the sealing surfaces 9 and 25. Then, as in the first embodiment, these are integrally connected to each other by appropriate fastener means 11.

This operation can be performed by inserting a hand through the inflator mounting hole 26 opened at the axial end face of the inflator housing 21. Of course, the inflator 2 is attached after the attachment of the airbag 5 is completed.

Also in the second embodiment, the hook member 12
The structure of the first embodiment is exactly the same as that of the first embodiment with respect to the joint between the first and second embodiments, and the mounting procedure between the inflator device 1, the lid 6, and the instrument panel 7 is the same as that of the first embodiment. It is.

[0027]

As described above, according to the present invention, the interconnection between the lid and the applicator can be extremely easily performed without the need for rivets or the like, and a great effect is obtained in enhancing the workability of assembling the lid. Can be

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a main part of an airbag device to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view similar to FIG. 1, showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 airbag device 2 inflator 3 lower retainer 4 air retainer 5 airbag 6 lid 7 instrument panel 7a opening 12 hook member 13 engaging piece 14 long hole 16 claw

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An inflator for generating gas, an airbag inflated by a gas pressure generated by the inflator,
A retainer fixed to the vehicle body for storing the airbag, wherein when a deceleration exceeding a predetermined value acts on the vehicle, the lid normally closes through the opening of the instrument panel closed by the lid. An airbag-type occupant protection device in which the airbag is inflated into the passenger compartment by pushing the airbag, wherein the retainer includes a hook portion on each of opposing wall surfaces, and the lid includes: A plurality of engaging pieces each having a hole to be engaged with the hook part, wherein the hook part and the engaging piece are mutually deformed when at least one of them is elastically deformed. An airbag-type occupant protection device characterized by engaging with a vehicle.