Seat with airbag

• US 10,471,920 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2017
• Issued: 11/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Dry, Alan George, Kondrad, Marcos Silva, Line, Jonathan Andrew, Preuss, Kevin Wayne, Spahn, Brian Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Dickson, Paul N
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wilhelm, Timothy
• Application Number:
  US15/664,338
• Publication Number:
  US 20190031132A1
• Time in Patent Office: 834 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0032 Position of passenger
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/2074 in head rests
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23107 the bag being integrated in a multi-bag system
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23386 External tether means
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/207 in vehicle seats
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/2165 characterised by a tear line for defining a deployment opening
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/233 comprising a plurality of individual compartments; comprising two or more bag-like members, one within the other B60R21/232 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/2338 Tethers
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/021 specially adapted to land vehicles

Abstract

A seat includes a seat bottom and a seatback coupled to the seat bottom. The seatback includes a headrest and a front face facing the seat bottom. The seat includes an airbag inflatable from an undeployed position to a deployed position. The airbag in the undeployed position is supported by the front face above the headrest. The seat includes a tether extending from the seatback to the airbag.

Claims

1. A seat comprising:

a seat bottom;

a seatback coupled to the seat bottom, the seatback having a headrest and a front face facing the seat bottom;

an airbag inflatable from an undeployed position to a deployed position, the airbag in the undeployed position being supported by the front face above the headrest; and

a tether extending from the seatback to the airbag;

wherein the tether is fixed to the seatback between the headrest and the seat bottom;

wherein the tether defines a radial inflation path for the airbag, the path centered at the location where the tether is fixed to the seatback.

2. The seat of claim 1, wherein the seatback includes a side panel covering the tether in the undeployed position, the side panel including a frangible seam extending along the tether and the side panel being designed to be torn along the frangible seam by the tether during inflation of the airbag.

3. The seat of claim 2, wherein the side panel is a first side panel, the seatback includes a second side panel opposite the first side panel, and the tether extends from the first side panel to the second side panel.

4. The seat of claim 3, wherein the tether is attached to the airbag at a location on the tether between where the tether is fixed to the first side panel and where the tether is fixed to the second side panel, and the airbag includes a reinforcement area at the location where the tether is attached to the airbag, the reinforcement area having a material thickness greater than a material thickness of the rest of the airbag.

5. The seat of claim 1, wherein the tether has a first end and a second end each fixed to the seatback, and the tether is attached to the airbag between the first end and the second end.

6. The seat of claim 1, wherein the airbag includes a main shell defining an inflation chamber and a wing defining a wing chamber in fluid communication with the inflation chamber, the main shell in the deployed position extending from the seatback toward the seat bottom, and the wing in the deployed position extending from the main shell toward the seatback.

7. The seat of claim 6, wherein the seatback includes a side panel extending from the front face, and in the deployed position, the main shell is designed to abut legs of an occupant and the wing is designed to abut the side panel of the seatback.

8. The seat of claim 6, wherein the airbag includes a second wing opposite the wing in the deployed position, wherein the main shell, the seatback, the wing, and the second wing are designed to surround an occupant.

9. The seat of claim 1, further comprising a second airbag supported by the seatback and inflatable from an undeployed position to a deployed position, the second airbag, in the deployed position, extending from the seatback toward the airbag.

10. The seat of claim 9, wherein the airbag and the second airbag each include an inflation chamber separate and distinct from each other.

11. The seat of claim 1, wherein a distance along the seatback from the seat bottom to the airbag in the undeployed position is greater than a distance along the seatback from the seat bottom to the headrest.

12. The seat of claim 1, wherein in the deployed position, the airbag is designed to abut legs of an occupant.

13. The seat of claim 1, further comprising a housing supported by the front face, wherein the airbag is packaged into the housing such that, during a first stage of inflation of the airbag, the tether is attached to the airbag on a surface generally facing the seatback, and during a second stage of inflation of the airbag, the tether is attached to the airbag on a surface generally facing the seat bottom, and in the deployed position, the tether is attached to the airbag on a surface generally facing away from the seatback.

14. The seat of claim 1, wherein the airbag is inflatable in a direction generally perpendicular to the front face of the seatback.

15. The seat of claim 1, wherein in the undeployed position, the airbag in its entirety is positioned above the headrest.

16. The seat of claim 1, wherein the seatback includes a first end coupled to the seat bottom and a second end spaced from the seat bottom, and the front panel includes a longitudinal axis extending from the first end to the second end along the center of the front panel, and the airbag in the undeployed position crosses the longitudinal axis.

17. The seat of claim 16, wherein the headrest crosses the longitudinal axis, and the airbag in the undeployed position is positioned closer to the second end than the headrest.

18. The seat of claim 1, wherein the airbag in the deployed position includes an inner shell facing the seatback and an outer shell facing away from the seatback, and the tether is attached to the outer shell.

19. A seat comprising:

a seat bottom;

a seatback coupled to the seat bottom, the seatback having a headrest and a front face facing the seat bottom;

an airbag inflatable from an undeployed position to a deployed position, the airbag in the undeployed position being supported by the front face above the headrest; and

a tether extending from the seatback to the airbag;

wherein the seatback includes a side panel covering the tether in the undeployed position, the side panel including a frangible seam extending along the tether and the side panel being designed to be torn along the frangible seam by the tether during inflation of the airbag;

wherein the side panel is a first side panel, the seatback includes a second side panel opposite the first side panel, and the tether extends from the first side panel to the second side panel.

20. A seat comprising:

a seat bottom;

a seatback coupled to the seat bottom, the seatback having a headrest and a front face facing the seat bottom;

an airbag inflatable from an undeployed position to a deployed position, the airbag in the undeployed position being supported by the front face above the headrest; and

a tether extending from the seatback to the airbag;

wherein the airbag includes a main shell defining an inflation chamber and a wing defining a wing chamber in fluid communication with the inflation chamber, the main shell in the deployed position extending from the seatback toward the seat bottom, and the wing in the deployed position extending from the main shell toward the seatback;

wherein the seatback includes a side panel extending from the front face, and in the deployed position, the main shell is designed to abut legs of an occupant and the wing is designed to abut the side panel of the seatback.

21. A seat comprising:

a seat bottom;

a seatback coupled to the seat bottom, the seatback having a headrest and a front face facing the seat bottom;

an airbag inflatable from an undeployed position to a deployed position, the airbag in the undeployed position being supported by the front face above the headrest;

a tether extending from the seatback to the airbag; and

a housing supported by the front face, wherein the airbag is packaged into the housing such that, during a first stage of inflation of the airbag, the tether is attached to the airbag on a surface generally facing the seatback, and during a second stage of inflation of the airbag, the tether is attached to the airbag on a surface generally facing the seat bottom, and in the deployed position, the tether is attached to the airbag on a surface generally facing away from the seatback.