Vehicle seat airbag system and vehicle seat

• US 10,414,372 B2
• Filed: 02/21/2018
• Issued: 09/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Subaru Corp.
• Original Assignee: Subaru Corp.
• Inventors: Nagasawa, Isamu, Kamata, Yoshihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Verley, Nicole T
• Application Number:
  US15/901,067
• Publication Number:
  US 20180178747A1
• Time in Patent Office: 573 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/4221 due to impact coming from the front
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/4228 due to impact coming from the rear
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/427 Seats or parts thereof displaced during a crash
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/4279 electric or electronic triggering
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/6009 covering more than only the seat
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0032 Position of passenger
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0051 Knees
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01231 control of expansion timing or sequence
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23153 specially adapted for rear seat passengers
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23161 specially adapted for protecting at least two passengers, e.g. preventing them from hitting each other
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23169 specially adapted for knee protection
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/013 including means for detecting collisions, impending collisions or roll-over
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0134 responsive to imminent contact with an obstacle , e.g. using radar systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0136 responsive to actual contact with an obstacle , e.g. to vehicle deformation, bumper displacement or bumper velocity relative to the vehicle monitoring crash strength in combination with passenger seat detection B60R21/01558
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/207 in vehicle seats

Abstract

A vehicle seat includes a seat back frame, an elastic installation supporting member installed in the seat back frame, and an airbag within a seat back, the vehicle seat causing the airbag to inflate and develop within the seat back. An inflator is attached to the seat back frame. An inflation and a development of the airbag in the seat back due to an operation of the inflator allows the airbag to elastically support an upper body of a seated person and to elastically receive an impact force which is applied to a rear of the seat back.

Claims

1. A vehicle seat, comprising:

a seat back frame including a seat pad portion;

an elastic installation supporting member installed in the seat back frame; and

an airbag that is disposed rearward of the elastic installation supporting member, the airbag being located within a seat back, the vehicle seat causing the airbag to inflate and develop between the elastic installation support member and a cover of the seat back within the seat back,

wherein an inflator is mounted on the seat back frame,

wherein an inflation and a development of the airbag in the seat back due to an operation of the inflator allows the airbag to elastically support an upper body of a seated person and to elastically receive an impact force which is applied to a rear side of the seat back frame, and

wherein the impact force is due to a forward movement of a rear-seated person caused by an impact of a rear-end collision.

2. The vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the seat back frame has a substantially frame shape along a seat back shape,

wherein the airbag is provided in the seat back frame in the substantially frame shape, and

wherein the inflator is attached to a side portion of the seat back frame in the substantially frame shape.

3. The vehicle seat according to claim 2, wherein the inflator is disposed within the seat back frame in the substantially frame shape.

4. The vehicle seat according to claim 3, wherein the airbag is disposed in a vehicle body rearwardly of the elastic installation supporting member, and

wherein the inflator is disposed in the vehicle body forwardly of the elastic installation supporting member.

5. The vehicle seat according to claim 2, wherein the inflator is disposed outside the seat back frame in the substantially frame shape.

6. The vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the seat back comprises an elastic material such that the seat back is configured to deform and protrude toward the seated person after the airbag is inflated.

7. The vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the elastic installation supporting member is provided on a back of the seat pad which includes a urethane foam material, and the airbag being disposed between the elastic installation supporting member and the cover of the seat back, and

wherein the impact force is applied to the elastic installation supporting member from a direction opposite to the seated person sitting, in a front of the vehicle, on the vehicle seat.

8. The vehicle seat according to claim 1, further comprising:

an outer layer disposed between the elastic installation supporting member and the seated person, the outer layer covering a rear of the airbag.

9. The vehicle seat according to claim 8, wherein a front of the airbag is covered with flexible materials including the elastic installation supporting member and the outer layer such that, after the inflation and development of the airbag, the flexible materials deform in a forward direction of the vehicle seat, and

wherein the outer layer covers a rear of the airbag, as one of the flexible materials, to deform in a rearward direction of the vehicle seat.

10. The vehicle seat according to claim 1, the impact force is inserted from at least a knee of the rear-seated person sitting behind the vehicle seat, after the inflation and the development of the airbag, the airbag protecting the knee of the rear-seated person.

11. A vehicle seat, comprising:

a seat back frame including a seat pad portion;

an elastic installation supporting member installed in the seat back frame; and

an airbag that is disposed rearward of the elastic installation supporting member, the airbag being located within a seat back, the vehicle seat causing the airbag to inflate and develop between the elastic installation member and a cover of the seat back within the seat back,

wherein an inflator is mounted on the seat back frame,

wherein the seat back frame is formed as a whole in a substantially frame shape along a seat back shape,

wherein the airbag is provided in the seat back frame in the substantially frame shape,

wherein the inflator is attached to the seat back frame in the substantially frame shape at a corner portion or a bending portion thereof,

wherein an inflation and a development of the airbag in the seat back due to an operation of the inflator allows the airbag to elastically support an upper body of a seated person and to elastically receive an impact force which is applied to a rear side of the seat back frame, and

wherein the impact force is due to a forward movement of a rear-seated person caused by an impact of a rear-end collision.

12. The vehicle seat according to claim 11, wherein the attachment of the inflator to the seat back frame is achieved by bridging the inflator between both side positions of the seat back frame including the corner portion or the bending portion.

13. The vehicle seat according to claim 12, wherein the seat back frame has a lower cross member and an upper cross member that extend in a width direction at a lower position and an upper position respectively, and a pair of side frames that are disposed on both sides in the width direction, and

wherein the corner portion or the bending portion serves as a connecting portion between the side frames and the lower cross member, and the inflator is bridged between and attached to the side frames and the lower cross member.

14. The vehicle seat according to claim 12, wherein the seat back frame include a lower cross member and an upper cross member that extend in a width direction at a lower and an upper positions respectively, and a pair of side frames that are disposed on both sides in the width direction, and

wherein the corner portion or the bending portion is located between the side frames and the upper frame, and the inflator is bridged between and attached to the side frames and the upper cross member.