JP3929770B2 - Airbag device for side impact of automobile - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an airbag device for a side impact of an automobile.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In an automobile airbag device, a side collision in which an airbag is deployed forward from the end of the seat back of the vehicle in the event of a side collision of the vehicle (hereinafter referred to as a side collision) and the occupant is protected by the airbag. There is an air bag device (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-217896 as a similar technique).
[0003]
This type of airbag has a bag shape with a large vertical dimension, and is partitioned into an upper chest protection chamber and a lower waist protection chamber by a partition provided inside. An inflator is built in the rear end portion of the airbag, and the airbag positioned in front of the inflator is stored in the seat back in a folded state. The gas ejected from the inflator first enters the waist protection chamber and begins to inflate, and then is introduced into the chest protection chamber from the communicating portion formed in the partition wall, so that the entire airbag is inflated and provided in the seat back Projects forward from the cleaved portion.
[0004]
The partition wall is positioned higher than the inflator in the interior space of the airbag, and a communication portion is formed in the middle of the partition wall. The gas from the inflator is first led to the lumbar protection room because the lumbar part is heavier than the chest part in the occupant's body, and the internal pressure is higher than the chest part (approximately twice) to ensure protection of the lumbar part. Is required. For this reason, the gas is first introduced into the waist protection chamber to increase the pressure, and the gas is introduced from the communicating portion to the chest protection chamber using the pressure in the waist protection chamber.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in such a conventional technique, the partition wall of the airbag is positioned higher than the inflator, and an opening-like communication portion is formed in the partition wall, so that the airbag is folded and stored in the seat back. In this state, the communication part is not sufficiently opened, and the gas ejected into the waist protection chamber is difficult to be supplied from the communication part to the chest protection room. For this reason, there is a certain limit to the airbag deployment speed, and in order to increase the speed further, it is necessary to mount a larger and higher output inflator, leading to an increase in weight and cost.
[0006]
The present invention has been made by paying attention to such a conventional technique, and provides an airbag device for a side impact of an automobile that can increase the deployment speed of the airbag without increasing the output of the inflator. It is.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The invention according to claim 1 is provided with a bag-like airbag that is housed in a folded state in an end portion on the vehicle outer side of the seat back and that can be deployed forward from the end portion in a side collision. The internal space is divided into an upper chest protection chamber and a lower waist protection chamber by a partition wall connecting two base fabrics facing in the left-right direction, and is formed on the lower side surface at the rear end of the airbag A side impact airbag device for an automobile in which an inflator for injecting gas from the injection unit to the waist protection chamber is built in, and a communication part for introducing the gas injected into the waist protection chamber to the chest protection chamber is provided in the partition wall. The partition is formed so as to be substantially linear in the airbag deployment state, the rear end of the partition is positioned within the vertical dimension range of the inflator, and the rear end of the partition and the inflator are separated from each other Form a communication part The guide plate, while being opposed to the jetting portion, than the top of the guide plate is provided as towards the bottom is separated with respect to the inflator, wherein the guide plate is a gas ejected from the jet unit Most of the gas is directed toward the waist protection chamber side, and a part of the gas ejected from the injection unit is directed to the communication portion, and the gas is supplied from the communication portion to the chest protection chamber .
[0008]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the rear end of the partition wall is positioned within the vertical dimension range of the inflator, and the communication portion is formed by separating the rear end of the partition wall from the inflator. Even when the airbag itself is folded, the rear end of the airbag is three-dimensionally retained by the built-in inflator so that the left and right base fabrics are spread. The rear end of the bulkhead facing the inflator and the inflator The communication portion formed between them is secured to some extent from the beginning. Accordingly, the gas ejected into the waist protection chamber is easily supplied from the communication portion to the chest protection chamber, and the deployment speed of the entire airbag is improved.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, a part of the gas ejected from the inflator can be directed toward the communicating portion by the guide plate, and the gas can be directly introduced into the chest protection chamber from the communicating portion. The deployment balance in the vertical direction of the airbag can be adjusted. In other words, if all of the gas from the inflator is initially supplied to the waist protection chamber side and the deployment balance in the vertical direction of the airbag is affected, a part of the gas is communicated from the communicating portion by the guide plate. By facing the chest protection room side, the development balance in the vertical direction can be optimally adjusted.
[0009]
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the auxiliary communication portion is formed by separating the front end of the partition wall from the inner surface of the airbag.
[0010]
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the development balance in the front-rear direction of the airbag is adjusted by separating the front end of the partition wall and the inner surface of the airbag to form another auxiliary communication portion. be able to. In other words, if the communication part is provided between the rear end of the partition and the inflator, and the deployment balance in the front-rear direction of the airbag is affected, another auxiliary communication part is added to the front end of the partition. By doing so, the development balance in the front-rear direction can be optimally adjusted.
[0011]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, a front projecting portion is formed at the front peripheral edge of the airbag, and an inner surface of the front projecting portion is separated from a front end of the partition wall to form an auxiliary communication portion.
[0012]
According to the invention described in claim 3, since the front protrusion is formed at the front peripheral edge of the airbag and the auxiliary communication portion is formed between the inner surface and the front end of the partition wall, the position of the auxiliary communication portion is more forward. Therefore, it is easy to deviate from the front and rear dimension range of the armrest formed on the vehicle body side wall (including the door). If the auxiliary communication portion is located within the longitudinal dimension range of the armrest, the auxiliary communication portion may be sandwiched between the armrest and the occupant, and the gas may not flow sufficiently.
[0013]
In the invention according to claim 4, an opening-shaped auxiliary communication portion is formed in the middle of the partition wall.
[0014]
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the opening balance in the front-rear direction of the airbag can be adjusted by forming the opening-shaped auxiliary communication part in the middle of the partition wall.
[0015]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the auxiliary communication portion is formed at a position deviating from the longitudinal dimension range of the armrest formed on the side wall of the vehicle body.
[0016]
According to the fifth aspect of the invention, since the auxiliary communication portion is formed at a position outside the range of the front and rear dimensions of the armrest formed on the side wall of the vehicle body, the auxiliary communication portion is sandwiched between the armrest and the occupant. Gas is easy to flow.
[0017]
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the auxiliary communication portion is formed at a position deviating from the longitudinal dimension range of the occupant's body.
[0018]
According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, since the auxiliary communication portion is formed at a position deviated from the longitudinal dimension range of the occupant's body, the auxiliary communication portion is sandwiched between the vehicle body side wall and the occupant. There is no, and gas flows easily.
[0021]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[0022]
1 to 7 are views showing a first embodiment of the present invention. Reference numeral 1 in the figure denotes a right front seat, which is formed of a seat back 2 and a seat cushion 3. At a position adjacent to the front seat 1, there is a door 4 as a “vehicle body side wall”, and an armrest 5 is formed on the inner side surface thereof.
[0023]
An airbag module 6 is built in the right end portion of the seat back 2. An airbag 7 and an inflator 8 are accommodated in the airbag module 6, and the airbag 7 is deployed forward from the tearing portion of the seat back 2 when the vehicle crashes, and is interposed between the occupant M and the door 4. By doing so, the occupant M is protected.
[0024]
The airbag 7 has a bag shape in which the outer peripheries of two base fabrics 9 are stitched (see FIG. 4), and a partition wall 10 that connects the two base fabrics 9 facing each other on the left and right is formed inside. ing. Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the partition 10 forms an internal space of the airbag 7 into a lower waist protection chamber A and an upper chest protection chamber B. The waist protection room A includes the hip point P of the occupant M, and a higher internal pressure than that of the chest protection room B is required.
[0025]
As shown in FIG. 5, the airbag 7 is folded into a waveform in a substantially flat state and is stored in the airbag module 6. As shown in FIG. 3, the rear end portion 11 of the airbag 7 is opened as an inlet of the inflator 8. After the inflator 8 is inserted into the inflator 8, the rear end portion 11 a is folded and the stud of the inflator 8 is inserted. The bolt 12 is penetrated. Therefore, the rear end portion 11 of the attachment piece 7 a of the airbag 7 is three-dimensionally retained by the built-in inflator 8, and the left and right base fabrics 9 are spread so as to enclose the inflator 8.
[0026]
The partition wall 10 that divides the waist protection chamber A and the chest protection chamber B of the airbag 7 is positioned in a substantially horizontal state below the vertical dimension range H of the inflator 8. A rear end of the partition wall 10 is separated from the inflator 8 in a semicircular cutout shape, and a communication portion 13 is formed between the partition wall 10 and the inflator 8.
[0027]
A front projecting portion 14 is formed on the front peripheral edge of the airbag 7, and the auxiliary communication portion 15 is formed by separating the inner surface of the front projecting portion 14 from the front end of the partition wall 10. Since the front peripheral edge of the airbag 7 is projected forward as the front protrusion 14 and the auxiliary communication portion 15 is formed between the inner surface and the front end of the partition wall 10, the position of the auxiliary communication portion 15 is as shown in FIG. In addition, the armrest 5 is out of the front / rear dimension range L1 to the front side (left side in FIG. 2). In addition, the position of the auxiliary communication portion 15 is, of course, a state deviated to the front side (left side in FIG. 2) from the longitudinal dimension range L2 of the occupant M's body.
[0028]
As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a gas G injection part 16 is formed on the lower side surface of the inflator 8, and the lower part of the retainer 17 that holds the inflator 8 is made close to the injection part 16 and inclined. A guide plate 18 is formed. The lower end of the guide plate 18 is inclined in a direction away from the injection unit 16, and the flow path of the gas G is wider in the lower part, so that most of the gas G flows downward and the waist protection chamber A However, a part thereof flows upward and is directed to the communication part 13, and is directly supplied from the communication part 13 to the chest protection room B.
[0029]
Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. When the automobile has a side collision, the gas G is injected from the injection unit 16 of the inflator 8. Most of the gas G flows below the guide plate 18 and is supplied to the waist protection chamber A, and a part of the gas G flows above the guide plate 18 and is directly supplied from the communicating portion 13 to the chest protection chamber B.
[0030]
The gas G supplied to the waist protection chamber A is introduced into the chest protection chamber B from the communication portion 13 and the auxiliary communication portion 15 while inflating the waist protection chamber A, and expands the entire airbag 7. At this time, even if the airbag 7 itself is not fully expanded from the folded state, the rear end of the partition wall 10 is located within the vertical dimension range H of the inflator 8, so 11 is three-dimensionally retained by the built-in inflator 8 so that the left and right base fabrics 9 are spread, and a communication portion 13 formed between the rear end of the partition wall 10 facing the inflator 8 and the inflator 8. Is secured to some extent from the beginning, and the gas G ejected into the waist protection chamber A is easily supplied from the communication portion 13 to the chest protection chamber B, so that the deployment speed of the entire airbag 7 is improved.
[0031]
Therefore, even when the gap between the occupant M and the door 4 is narrow, the airbag 7 surely enters the narrow gap, and the chest and waist of the occupant M can be reliably protected. In the deployed state, the waist protection chamber A has a higher internal pressure than the chest protection chamber B, and the waist of the occupant M having a high weight ratio can be reliably protected. The head of the occupant M is protected by another curtain airbag (not shown) that extends downward from the upper part of the vehicle body.
[0032]
Although the communication portion 13 is provided between the rear end of the partition wall 10 and the inflator 8, there is a case where the deployment balance of the airbag 7 in the front-rear direction may be affected. Since another auxiliary communication portion 15 is also added to the front end, the development balance in the front-rear direction can be optimally adjusted.
[0033]
Further, by supplying all the gas G from the inflator 8 to the waist protection chamber A first, there is a case where the deployment balance in the vertical direction of the airbag 7 may be affected. By causing the plate 18 to direct a part of the gas G directly from the communication portion 13 to the chest protection chamber B side, the development balance in the vertical direction can be adjusted optimally.
[0034]
Further, in this embodiment, the front protruding portion 14 is formed on the front peripheral edge of the airbag 7 and the auxiliary communication portion 15 is formed between the inner surface of the airbag 7 and the front end of the partition wall 10, so that the position of the auxiliary communication portion 15 is further increased. It will be in the front, and will be in the state where it deviated to the front side rather than the front-rear dimension range L1 of the armrest 5 formed in the door 4 (Of course, it will be deviated to the front side from the front dimension range L2 of the body of the passenger M). Therefore, the auxiliary communication portion 15 is not sandwiched between the armrest 5 (or door 4) and the occupant M, so that the gas G does not sufficiently flow to the chest protection room B side.
[0035]
FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the auxiliary communication portion 20 having an opening shape is formed in the middle of the partition wall 19 to adjust the deployment balance of the airbag 21 in the front-rear direction. Although this auxiliary communication part 20 is in the middle of the partition wall 19, it is outside the front dimension range L2 of the occupant's body, so the auxiliary communication part 20 is sandwiched between the door and the occupant, and gas is sufficient. It does not become difficult to flow to the chest protection room B side. Other configurations and operational effects are the same as those in the first embodiment, and the same reference numerals are given to common portions, and redundant descriptions are omitted.
[0036]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, since the rear end of the partition wall is located within the vertical dimension range of the inflator and the communication portion is formed by separating the rear end of the partition wall and the inflator, the airbag itself is folded. Even in the state, the rear end portion of the airbag is three-dimensionally retained by the built-in inflator so that the left and right base fabrics are spread, and is formed between the rear end of the partition wall facing the inflator and the inflator. The communication part is secured to a certain extent from the beginning. Accordingly, the gas ejected into the waist protection chamber is easily supplied from the communication portion to the chest protection chamber, and the deployment speed of the entire airbag is improved.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a front seat in which an airbag device according to a first embodiment of the present invention is built in a seat back.
2 is a side view showing a state in which the airbag of FIG. 1 is deployed. FIG.
3 is a perspective view showing the structure of the airbag of FIG. 2. FIG.
4 is a sectional view taken along the line SA-SA in FIG.
5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line SB-SB in FIG.
6 is a perspective view showing the inflator shown in FIG. 1. FIG.
7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line SC-SC shown in FIG.
FIG. 8 is a side view showing an airbag according to a second embodiment.
[Explanation of symbols]
2 Seat back 4 Door (vehicle body side wall)
5 Armrest 7, 21 Airbag 8 Inflator 9 Base fabric 10, 19 Bulkhead 11 Rear end portion 13 Communication portion 14 Front projection portion 15, 20 Auxiliary communication portion 16 Injection portion 18 Guide plate A Waist protection chamber B Chest protection chamber G Gas M Crew P Hip point L1 Reinforce front and rear dimension range L2 Crew body front and rear dimension range H Inflator vertical dimension range

Claims (6)

A bag-like airbag that is housed in a folded state in an end portion on the vehicle outer side of the seat back and can be deployed forward from the end portion at the time of a side collision,
The inner space of the airbag is partitioned into an upper chest protection chamber and a lower waist protection chamber by a partition wall connecting two base fabrics facing in the left-right direction,
At the rear end of the airbag, an inflator for injecting gas from the injection part formed on the lower side surface to the waist protection chamber side is incorporated,
The partition wall is an airbag device for a side collision of an automobile provided with a communication portion that introduces gas ejected into the waist protection chamber into the chest protection chamber,
Forming the partition so as to be substantially linear in the airbag deployment state;
The rear end of the partition wall is positioned within the vertical dimension range of the inflator, and the communication portion is formed by separating the rear end of the partition wall and the inflator ,
In a state where the guide plate is opposed to the injection unit, a lower part is provided so as to be separated from the inflator rather than an upper part of the guide plate.
The guide plate causes most of the gas ejected from the ejection unit to face the waist protection chamber side, and a part of the gas ejected from the ejection unit is directed to the communication unit so that the gas passes from the communication unit. An airbag device for a side collision of an automobile, characterized in that the airbag device is supplied to a chest protection room . An airbag device for a side collision of an automobile according to claim 1,
A side impact airbag apparatus for an automobile, wherein an auxiliary communication portion is formed by separating a front end of the partition wall and an inner surface of the airbag. An airbag device for a side collision of an automobile according to claim 1,
A side impact airbag device for an automobile, wherein a front projecting portion is formed at a front peripheral edge of the airbag, and an inner surface of the front projecting portion is separated from a front end of a partition wall to form an auxiliary communication portion. An airbag device for a side collision of an automobile according to claim 1,
An air bag device for a side collision of an automobile, wherein an auxiliary communication portion having an opening shape is formed in the middle of the partition wall. An airbag device for a side collision of an automobile according to any one of claims 2 to 4,
An airbag device for a side collision of an automobile, wherein the auxiliary communication portion is formed at a position deviating from a longitudinal dimension range of an armrest formed on a vehicle body side wall. An airbag device for a side collision of an automobile according to any one of claims 2 to 5,
A side impact airbag device for an automobile, wherein the auxiliary communication portion is formed at a position deviating from the longitudinal dimension range of the occupant's body.

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