KR102352130B1 - Airbag cover assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

An airbag cover assembly, comprising: an airbag cover coupled to a steering wheel; and a lighting emblem module installed inside the airbag cover and irradiating light to the outside of the airbag cover to illuminate it with an emblem, the lighting emblem module comprising: of a printed circuit board on which the LEDs are installed, a bracket for fixing the printed circuit board to the lower surface of the upper plate of the airbag cover, a cover installed on the upper part of the printed circuit board and shielding the plurality of LEDs and the upper surface of the printed circuit board and a container for limiting a movement path to prevent light irradiated from each LED from intersecting and mixing while being scattered, and installing the container between the substrate and the cover so that the light irradiated from the plurality of LEDs is intersected with each other It is possible to block crossing while scattering.

Description

Airbag cover assembly {AIRBAG COVER ASSEMBLY}

The present invention relates to an airbag cover assembly, and more particularly, to an airbag cover assembly coupled to a steering wheel of a vehicle and having an emblem installed on an upper surface thereof.

A driver's seat airbag device applied to a vehicle is widely used to protect a passenger in the driver's seat from an impact generated during a vehicle collision.

The driver's seat airbag device is generally mounted on a steering wheel and includes an inflator, an airbag cushion, a housing for accommodating the airbag cushion in a folded state, and a cover for covering an opening of the housing.

In the event of a collision of a vehicle, the airbag cushion inflates while gas is injected from the inflator, and when a cover made of soft resin is ruptured by the inflation force of the airbag cushion and an opening is formed in the cover, the airbag cushion is inflated toward the passenger of the vehicle through the opening.

Such a driver's seat airbag device may be provided with a cover having a decorative plate called an emblem.

For example, the following Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 disclose an airbag cover technology.

On the other hand, the emblem is generally made with the company's design or mark, and it does not mean the company simply manufactured in the vehicle, but functions to give the value of the vehicle expressed by the emblem.

Emblems are installed throughout the exterior and interior of the vehicle to reveal the credit value accumulated in the emblem. The location where these emblems are installed varies depending on the vehicle manufacturer, but most are installed on the rear of the vehicle and on the front of the steering wheel.

That is, it is installed on the airbag cover covering the armature installed in the center of the steering wheel steered by the passenger driving the vehicle.

Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-1718689 (Announced on March 22, 2017) Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-2005738 (Announced on July 31, 2019) Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-1076195 (published on October 26, 2011) US Patent No. US 8,925,959 (Jan. 6, 2015) US Patent No. US 8,061,861 (November 22, 2011)

In general, an emblem without a lighting function is applied to the airbag cover according to the prior art.

Accordingly, the airbag cover according to the prior art can be identified by natural light during the daytime, but at nighttime due to the insufficient amount of light, the identification becomes difficult.

In order to solve this problem, the technology for applying lighting to the emblem was developed in Patent Documents 3 to 5, etc., but the structure becomes complicated due to the addition of new parts such as LED, substrate, housing, and diffusion plate, and manufacturing There was a problem in that the cost was unnecessarily increased.

In addition, when a plurality of LEDs are installed under the airbag cover according to the prior art, light irradiated from each LED is scattered at various angles.

For this reason, the airbag cover according to the prior art loses its own color by mixing the lights emitted in different colors from a plurality of LEDs, or creates contrast depending on the irradiated position even when the light of the same color is irradiated. there was

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an airbag cover assembly capable of improving visibility by illuminating an emblem on the airbag cover to solve the above problems.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an airbag cover assembly capable of preventing light irradiated from a plurality of LEDs provided on a lighting emblem from intersecting with each other while being scattered or from generating contrast.

In order to achieve the above object, in the airbag cover assembly according to the present invention, the airbag cover assembly is installed inside the airbag cover coupled to the steering wheel and the airbag cover, and irradiating light to the outside of the airbag cover to form an emblem. and a lighting emblem module to illuminate, wherein the lighting emblem module includes a printed circuit board on which a plurality of LEDs are installed, a bracket for fixing the printed circuit board to a lower surface of the upper plate of the airbag cover, and is installed on the printed circuit board , It is characterized in that it includes a cover for shielding the upper surface of the plurality of LEDs and the printed circuit board, and a container for limiting the movement path to prevent the light irradiated from each LED from being crossed and mixed with each other while being scattered.

As described above, according to the airbag cover assembly according to the present invention, an effect of being able to illuminate with an emblem is obtained by installing a lighting emblem module provided with a plurality of LEDs under the airbag cover.

And, according to the present invention, by installing a container between the substrate and the cover, there is an effect that the light irradiated from the plurality of LEDs can be blocked from being scattered while crossing each other.

Accordingly, according to the present invention, the light irradiated with different colors from a plurality of LEDs is prevented from being mixed with each other while being scattered, thereby obtaining an effect of illuminating with a unique color emblem irradiated from each LED.

In addition, according to the present invention, the light irradiated with the same color from the plurality of LEDs is mixed with each other while being scattered, thereby obtaining an effect that it is possible to prevent the occurrence of contrast in the emblem area.

On the other hand, according to the present invention, the light diffused upward through the airbag cover by using the diffusion part of the cover is diffused in various directions and angles to prevent direct transmission to the driver's field of view, thereby preventing safety accidents caused by driver's glare. It has the effect of being able to prevent it in advance.

1 is a perspective view of an airbag cover assembly according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a perspective view of the lighting emblem module shown in Figure 1;
3 is an exploded perspective view of the lighting emblem module shown in FIG. 2;
4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A' shown in FIG. 1;
5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB' shown in FIG. 2;
6 is a perspective view showing the container from the bottom;
7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC' of the container and the substrate shown in FIG. 2;
8 is an exploded perspective view showing the airbag cover and the lighting module from the lower side;
9 is an exploded perspective view of an airbag cover assembly from a lower side according to another embodiment of the present invention;

Hereinafter, an airbag cover assembly according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a perspective view of an airbag cover assembly according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the lighting emblem module shown in FIG. 1 , and FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the lighting emblem module shown in FIG. 2 . And FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A' shown in FIG. 1 , and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B' shown in FIG. 2 .

Hereinafter, the direction in which the connector 34 is installed in the airbag cover 11 is referred to as 'rear', and the opposite direction is referred to as 'front'. And terms indicating directions such as 'left', 'right', 'upward' and 'downward' indicate each direction based on the above 'front' and 'rear' in the state shown in each figure. define.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the airbag cover assembly 10 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention is installed inside the airbag cover 11 and the airbag cover 11 coupled to the steering wheel, and the airbag cover ( 11) includes a lighting emblem module (hereinafter abbreviated as 'illumination module') 12 that illuminates as an emblem by irradiating light to the outside.

The airbag cover 11 includes a side wall portion 21 coupled to the steering wheel and an upper plate 22 covering the airbag module disposed in the armature by shielding an upper end of the side wall portion 21 .

The side wall part 21 may be formed in a cylindrical shape having various shapes, such as a circular shape, an oval shape, or a square shape, in cross section to correspond to the coupling space formed on the upper surface of the steering wheel. A lower cover (not shown) for shielding the lower surface of the side wall part 21 may be coupled to a lower portion of the side wall part 21 .

A leather cover is installed on the upper surface of the upper plate 22 , and a tear line that is broken according to the inflation of the airbag cushion may be formed.

The lighting module 12 is a printed circuit board (hereinafter abbreviated as 'substrate') 32 on which a plurality of LEDs 31 are installed, and the substrate 32 is fixed to the lower surface of the upper plate 22 of the airbag cover 11 . and a cover 50 installed on the bracket 40 and the substrate 32 to shield the upper surface of the plurality of LEDs 31 and the substrate 32 .

At the same time, the lighting module 12 is installed between the substrate 32 and the cover 11, and a container 60 that restricts the movement path so that the light irradiated from each LED 31 is scattered and does not cross each other is further added. may include

The substrate 32 is formed in a substantially rectangular plate shape, and on the upper surface of the substrate 32, a plurality of, for example, four LEDs 31 are provided at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction of the substrate 32 and the left-right direction when viewed in FIG. 2 . can be installed.

Of course, the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto, and may be changed to install two, three, five or more LEDs 31 .

The board 32 receives control signals and power from a control unit (not shown) and a battery (not shown) provided in the vehicle through a cable 33 and a connector 34 connected to one side and delivers them to each LED 31 . can

Therefore, the plurality of LEDs 31 may be turned on or flicker to emit light of the same color or different colors.

The substrate 32 may be fixed to the bottom surface of the upper plate 22 of the airbag cover 11 while being inserted into the bracket 40 .

The bracket 40 is formed in a substantially hexahedral shape with an open upper surface, and a flange 41 may be formed at an upper end of each side wall of the bracket 40 toward the outside.

A coupling hole 42 to which the plurality of bosses 23 formed on the bottom surface of the upper plate 22 of the airbag cover 11 are coupled may be formed in each flange 41 .

And in the inner space of the bracket 40, an inner side wall 43 is formed along the edge, and a fixing hook 44 for fixing the container 60 inserted therein is formed on the inner side wall 43, and the container 60 ), a fixing hole 63 to which the fixing hook 44 is coupled may be formed.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 , a pair of fixing hooks 44 may be formed to protrude upward at the front and rear ends of the inner sidewall 43 .

In addition, the support rib 45 on which the substrate 32 is seated may be formed on the inner sidewall 43 of the bracket 40 .

For example, the support rib 45 may be formed to protrude at a height lower than the height of the inner side wall 43 toward the inside from the left wall, the right wall, and the front wall among the inner side walls 43 of the bracket 40 .

Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , the substrate 32 may be installed on the upper end of each support rib 45 to be spaced apart from the upper surface of the bracket 40 by a predetermined distance.

As described above, in the present invention, by installing the substrate spaced apart from the upper surface of the bracket and cooling the LED by transferring external air to the lower portion of the substrate when the LED is driven, a heat dissipation effect can be obtained.

A plurality of reinforcing ribs 46 for reinforcing the rigidity of the side wall and the inner side wall 43 are formed between the side wall and the inner side wall 43 of the bracket 40 , and each reinforcing rib 46 is formed on the side wall of the container 60 . ), a plurality of slits 64 may be formed at positions corresponding to the .

The cover 50 shields each region in which the plurality of LEDs 31 are installed on the substrate 50 , and transmits light emitted from each LED 31 through a plurality of transmissions formed on the upper plate 22 of the airbag cover 11 . It functions to transmit upward through the ball (24).

To this end, the cover 50 may be made of a synthetic resin material such as plastic to be translucent or transparent.

On the other hand, when the light irradiated from the LED 31 is directed toward the driver's eyes, it may cause glare and cause a vehicle accident.

In order to solve this problem, in this embodiment, the cover 50 is manufactured to be translucent, and the cover 50 wraps the upper portion of each LED 31 to spread the light irradiated from the LED 31 in various directions and angles. A plurality of, that is, four diffusion parts 51 may be provided in a substantially hemispherical or dome shape.

And at least one coupling flange 52 is formed at the front end and the rear end of the cover 50, respectively, and the coupling protrusion 53 is formed to protrude downward so as to be coupled to the container 60 in each coupling flange 52. can

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 , each coupling protrusion 53 is formed in a substantially downward-facing arrow shape and is fixed in a state of being inserted into the insertion hole 65 formed in the container 60 .

The container 60 is installed between the substrate 32 and the cover 50 , and serves to prevent light irradiated upward from each LED 31 from crossing each other while being scattered at various angles.

For example, FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the container from the bottom side, and FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C′ of the container and the substrate shown in FIG. 2 .

As shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 6 and 7, the container 60 is made of a synthetic resin material to be opaque, and the container 60 is the light irradiated from each LED 31 . It transmits only upwards, and includes a plurality of blocking ribs 61 , that is, four blocking ribs 61 that block the scattering to the periphery, that is, forward, backward, left and right.

The blocking rib 61 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape with the upper and lower surfaces open, blocks light irradiated from the LED 31 disposed in the interior space from being scattered around, and provides a movement path of light to move upward. function.

And, as shown in FIG. 6 , on the lower surface of the container 60 , a plurality of blocking ribs 61 , that is, three diaphragms 62 may be formed to extend along the front-rear direction.

Meanwhile, the airbag cover 11 is partially broken along the tear line formed on the upper plate 22 when the airbag cushion is inflated.

At this time, when the lighting module 12 is scattered together with the airbag cover 11 or separated from the airbag cover 11, it may cause injury to the driver.

In order to prevent such an accident, the lower end of the boss 23 is firmly fixed to the bracket 40 by using a pressing method, a heat fusion method using heat, etc. in a state coupled to the bracket 40 .

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4 in a state where one end of the cable 32 is connected to the board 32 or coupled through a connection connector, the cable 32 is drawn out through the rear side of the lighting module 12 , and the airbag cover 11 . It can be fixed in a state drawn downward along the rear wall of the

In addition, outlets through which the cables 33 are drawn out may be formed on the rear wall of the bracket 40 and the container 60 .

As described above, the present invention prevents the lighting emblem module from being separated from the airbag cushion when the airbag cushion is inflated by firmly coupling the airbag cover and the lighting emblem, thereby preventing injury to the driver due to the lighting emblem in advance.

Meanwhile, FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing the airbag cover and the lighting module from the lower side.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8 , a plurality of bosses ( 23) has been described as being formed, but the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto.

For example, FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing an airbag cover assembly according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention from a lower side.

In another embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 9 , a boss member 25 on which a plurality of bosses are formed is installed on the upper plate 22 of the airbag cover 11 .

The boss member 25 is formed in a substantially rectangular frame shape, and a plurality of bosses 23 may protrude downwardly on the lower surface of the boss member 25 .

That is, the boss member 25 is manufactured as a separate member using a material of a different material so as to have different characteristics from the airbag cover 11, and is manufactured in a state coupled to the airbag cover 11 by a double injection method. can

Here, the airbag cover 11 and the boss member 25 are each made of a synthetic resin material.

However, the airbag cover 11 may be manufactured using a material having elasticity and ductility, such as thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), so as to be breakable when the airbag cushion is inflated.

On the other hand, the boss member 25 uses a material having relatively superior rigidity compared to the TPU, such as ABS resin (Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene resin), so that it can be firmly coupled with the lighting module 12. can be manufactured.

As described above, according to the present invention, the assembly emblem module can be prevented from being separated from the airbag cover when the airbag cushion is inflated by installing the rigid boss member on the inside of the airbag cover having elasticity and ductility and securely fastening it.

Next, the coupling structure and operation method of the airbag cover assembly according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

First, the operator assembles the lighting module 12 by combining the substrate 32 and the bracket 40 , the container 60 and the cover 50 .

In detail, the board 32 on which the plurality of LEDs 31 are installed is coupled to the bracket 40 . At this time, the substrate 32 is seated on the support rib 45 formed on the inner sidewall 43 of the bracket 40 .

Next, after disposing the container 60 on the upper portion of the substrate 32, a plurality of fixing hooks 44 formed in the bracket 40 are coupled to the fixing holes 63 formed in the sidewall of the container 60 to the bracket ( 40) and the container 60 are assembled.

And the cover 50 is disposed on the upper part of the container 60, and the plurality of coupling protrusions 53 formed in the coupling flange 52 of the cover 50 are inserted into the plurality of insertion holes 65 formed in the container 60. By inserting each, the container 60 and the cover 50 are assembled.

When the assembly of the lighting module 12 is completed through this process, the plurality of bosses ( 23) is coupled to the plurality of coupling holes 42 formed in each flange 41 of the bracket 40, respectively.

At this time, the operator combines the fixing member to the lower end of the boss 23 in a state in which each boss 23 penetrates through each coupling hole 42, or presses the lower end of the boss 23 to deform it flat, Alternatively, it can be firmly fixed to the lower surface of the bracket 40 in various ways, such as fusion by applying heat to the lower end of the boss 23 .

When the assembly of the lighting module 12 on the airbag cover 11 is completed through this process, each LED 31 installed on the board 32 is turned on or off according to the power and control signal supplied through the cable 33 . blinking works.

In this case, the plurality of LEDs 31 may be lit or flickered simultaneously or individually in the same color or different colors, respectively.

When driving the plurality of LEDs 31 as described above, the container 60 prevents light irradiated from each LED 31 from intersecting while being scattered around.

That is, each of the plurality of LEDs 31 is disposed inside the plurality of blocking ribs 61 formed in the container 60 , and each blocking rib 61 prevents light irradiated from each LED 31 from being scattered to the surroundings. block Accordingly, the light irradiated from each LED 31 moves only upward.

So, the light moving upward of the blocking rib 31 is diffused upward and around through a plurality of diffusion parts 51 formed in the cover 50 and the through holes 24 of the airbag cover 11 to illuminate it as an emblem. .

In this way, the present invention can block the intersecting of the light irradiated from the plurality of LEDs while being scattered with each other by installing a container between the substrate and the cover.

Accordingly, according to the present invention, light irradiated with different colors from a plurality of LEDs is prevented from being mixed with each other while being scattered, so that it is possible to illuminate with a unique color emblem irradiated from each LED.

Alternatively, according to the present invention, light irradiated with the same color from a plurality of LEDs may be mixed with each other while being scattered, thereby preventing the occurrence of contrast in the emblem area.

Meanwhile, the diffusion part 51 of the cover 50 diffuses the light moving upward from the container 60 in various directions and angles.

Accordingly, according to the present invention, the light diffused upward through the airbag cover is prevented from being transmitted directly to the driver's field of view, thereby preventing a safety accident due to the driver's glare in advance.

Through the process as described above, in the present invention, the lighting emblem module provided with a plurality of LEDs under the airbag cover can be installed and illuminated with the emblem.

Although the invention made by the present inventors has been described in detail according to the above embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

The present invention is applied to an airbag cover assembly technology that illuminates with an emblem by installing a lighting emblem module provided with a plurality of LEDs under the airbag cover.

10: airbag cover assembly
11: Airbag Cover 12: Illuminated Emblem Module
21: side wall 22: top plate
23: boss 24: penetration hole
25: boss absence
31: LED 32: substrate
33: cable 34: connector
40: bracket 41: flange
42: coupling hole 43: inner sidewall
44: fixed hook 45: support rib
46: reinforcing rib
50: cover 51: diffuser
52: coupling flange 53: coupling protrusion
60: container 61: blocking rib
62: diaphragm 63: fixed hole
64: slit 65: insertion hole

Claims (8)

an airbag cover coupled to the steering wheel; and
and a lighting emblem module installed inside the airbag cover and illuminating as an emblem by irradiating light to the outside of the airbag cover,
The lighting emblem module includes a printed circuit board on which a plurality of LEDs are installed, a bracket for fixing the printed circuit board to a lower surface of the upper plate of the airbag cover, and is installed on the upper portion of the printed circuit board, the plurality of LEDs and the printed circuit board It includes a cover that shields the upper surface of the LED and a container that restricts the movement path to prevent the light irradiated from each LED from intersecting and mixing while being scattered,
The container includes a plurality of blocking ribs that transmit light emitted from each LED disposed in the inner space only upward and block scattering to the surroundings,
The blocking rib is an airbag cover assembly, characterized in that formed in a cylindrical shape with an open top and bottom. delete According to claim 1,
A plurality of diaphragms for blocking between the plurality of blocking ribs are formed on the lower surface of the container,
The plurality of diaphragms are airbag cover assembly, characterized in that extended along the front-rear direction of the container. According to claim 1,
An inner side wall is formed along an edge in the inner space of the bracket,
A plurality of fixing hooks for fixing the container inserted therein are formed on the inner sidewall,
The airbag cover assembly, characterized in that the container is formed with a plurality of fixing holes to which the plurality of fixing hooks are respectively coupled. 5. The method of claim 4,
A plurality of reinforcing ribs for reinforcing rigidity of the side wall and the inner side wall are formed between the side wall and the inner side wall of the bracket,
An airbag cover assembly, characterized in that a plurality of slits are formed on the sidewall of the container at positions corresponding to the respective reinforcing ribs. 6. The method according to any one of claims 1 and 3 to 5,
The airbag cover includes a side wall portion coupled to the steering wheel;
and an upper plate that shields the upper end of the side wall portion,
The airbag cover assembly according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of bosses coupled to the coupling holes of the bracket are formed on a lower surface of the upper plate. 6. The method according to any one of claims 1 and 3 to 5,
The airbag cover includes a side wall portion coupled to the steering wheel;
and an upper plate that shields the upper end of the side wall portion,
The airbag cover assembly according to claim 1, wherein a boss member having a plurality of bosses coupled to the coupling hole of the bracket is installed on a lower surface of the upper plate by a double injection molding method. 8. The method of claim 7,
The airbag cover is made of a synthetic resin material having elasticity and ductility,
The airbag cover assembly, characterized in that the boss member is made of a material having a rigidity than that of the airbag cover.

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