Head protecting air bag apparatus

• US 20010006287A1
• Filed: 12/27/2000
• Published: 07/05/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Takashi, Tanase, Toshinori, Ohno, Mitsuyoshi, Urushi, Norio
• Granted Patent: US 6,520,533 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 280/730.2
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/161 characterised by additional means for controlling deployment trajectory
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/213 in vehicle roof frames or pillars
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/232 Curtain-type airbags deploying mainly in a vertical direction from their top edge
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/237 characterised by the way they are folded

Abstract

A head protecting air bag apparatus includes a lid and an air bag. The lid is disposed at an upper edge side periphery of an opening at a vehicle'"'"'s inner side in a vehicle body and at an upper portion of a pillar portion. The air bag is attached to the vehicle'"'"'s inner side of the vehicle body, is housed at a vehicle'"'"'s outer side position of the lid in a folded state, and pushes and opens the lid to cover the opening when unfolding and expansion is caused by inflow of gas for expansion. The air bag is folded so that a lower edge side approaches an upper edge side, and an attachment portion at the upper edge side is attached to the vehicle body so that the air bag is housed at the vehicle'"'"'s outer side of the lid. A part of a lower end of the lid is disposed at a vehicle'"'"'s outer side of an upper end of a pillar garnish covering a vehicle'"'"'s inner side of the pillar portion. A part of the air bag at a position where the lower end of the lid is disposed at the vehicle'"'"'s outer side of the upper end of the pillar garnish has a more intensified force to push and open the lid than another part. In the head protecting air bag apparatus of the invention, when the air bag is unfolded and expanded, the lower end of the lid disposed at the vehicle'"'"'s outer side of the upper end of the pillar garnish easily gets over the upper end of the pillar garnish. Then the air bag is smoothly unfolded and expanded.

Claims

1. An air bag apparatus comprising:

a moveable lid disposed in a folded state adjacent an interior upper edge of a vehicle window and adjacent an upper portion of a pillar;

an air bag attached to the interior of the vehicle body, the air bag being arranged to push against and open the lid as the air bag deploys, the air bag including a lower edge, an upper edge, and an attachment portion disposed at the upper edge for attachment to the vehicle body,

the air bag being folded so that the lower edge approaches the upper edge and the attachment portion is attached to the vehicle body so that the air bag is housed behind the lid,

a portion of a lower end of the lid being retained by a portion of the interior trim on the pillar, and

a portion of the air bag adjacent the lower end of the lid providing a focused and intensified force against the lid upon deployment.

2. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 1

, wherein the portion of the air bag providing the focused and intensified force is twisted from the remaining portions of the air bag so that unfolding of such portion is directed toward the lid.

3. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 2

, wherein

the air bag initially has a flat, unexpanded unfolded orientation that is folded in a bellows fashion in a substantially vertical direction from the lower edge toward the upper edge.

4. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 2

, further comprising a restraining member disposed at an upper position of the pillar portion, for preventing the air bag at the time of unfolding and deployment from engaging the pillar trim.

5. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 4

wherein the restraining member includes a guide surface, a lower end of the guide surface being directed toward a parting portion defined between the lower end of the lid and an upper end of the pillar trim.

6. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 5

wherein the portion of the air bag providing focused and intensified force to open the lid is positioned to be parallel to the guide surface.

7. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 4

, wherein the restraining member is formed integrally with the vehicle body.

8. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 4

, wherein the restraining member is formed with a flat plate shape and is disposed substantially vertically.

9. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 4

, wherein

the restraining member includes a substantially L-shaped section including a vertical wall portion and a horizontal wall portion extending from a lower end of the vertical wall portion toward the vehicle'"'"'s inner side,

the vertical wall portion supporting an outer side of the folded air bag,

an upper surface side of the horizontal wall portion comprising a guide surface, and

a lower end of the portion of the air bag providing focused and intensified force is supported on the guide surface.

10. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 1

, further comprising a restraining member, disposed at an upper position of the pillar portion, for preventing the air bag at the time of deployment from engaging the pillar trim,

the restraining member includes a substantially L-shaped section including a vertical wall portion and a horizontal wall portion extending from a lower end of the vertical wall portion toward the vehicle'"'"'s inner side,

the air bag initially has a flat, unexpanded unfolded orientation that is folded in a bellows fashion in a substantially vertical direction from the lower edge toward the upper edge,

the vertical wall portion supporting an outer side of the folded air bag,

the horizontal wall portion supports a lower end of the folded air bag, and is disposed to form an acute intersection angle with the lid, and

the portion of the air bag providing the focused and intensified force against the lid is constructed by forming an expanding portion at a narrow intersection between the lid and the horizontal wall portion.

11. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 8

, wherein the intersection angle between the horizontal wall portion and the lid ranges from about 50°

to about 80°

.

12. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 1

, further comprising a restraining member disposed at an upper position of the pillar portion, for preventing the air bag at the time of unfolding and expansion from intruding into the vehicle'"'"'s outer side of the pillar garnish, wherein

the restraining member includes a substantially L-shaped section including a vertical wall portion and a horizontal wall portion extending from a lower end of the vertical wall portion toward the vehicle'"'"'s inner side,

the vertical wall portion supporting an outer side of the folded air bag,

the horizontal wall portion supports a lower end of the folded air bag,

the air bag is put in flat, non-expanded unfolded orientation that is folded in a bellows fashion in a fold substantially vertical direction from the lower edge toward the upper edge, and

the portion of the air bag providing the focused intensified force to push and open the lid is constructed by disposing a tip end of the lower edge of the air bag to cover an upper portion of the folded air bag.

13. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 1

, further comprising a restraining member, disposed at an upper position of the pillar portion, for preventing the air bag at the time of deployment from engaging pillar, wherein

the restraining member includes a substantially L-shaped section including a vertical wall portion and a horizontal wall portion extending from a lower end of the vertical wall portion toward the vehicle'"'"'s inner side,

the vertical wall portion supporting an outer side of the folded air bag,

the horizontal wall portion supports a lower end side of the folded air bag, and

the portion of the air bag providing the focused and intensified force against the lid is formed by being folded so that a portion that is adjacent the vertical wall portion is expanded at the beginning of deployment.

14. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 13

, wherein

the air bag includes an upstream side and a downstream side, and

the portion of the air bag providing the focused and intensified force against the lid is formed so that the upstream side is disposed at the vertical wall portion, and the downstream side is disposed adjacent the lid.

15. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 14

, wherein

the air bag is folded in a bellows fashion in which a fold is provided substantially at an intermediate position in a vertical direction from a flat unfolded state of the airbag so that the lower edge of the air bag is folded back toward the vehicle'"'"'s interior, and it is folded substantially in the vertical direction from the lower edge of the air bag folded in half toward the upper edge, and

the portion of the air bag providing the focused and intensified force against the lid is formed so that the upstream side is disposed at the upper edge of the air bag in a non-deployed, flat unfolded state, and the downstream side is disposed at the lower edge of the air bag.

16. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 14

, wherein

the portion of the air bag providing the focused and intensified force against the lid includes, adjacent either the upper edge or the lower edge of the air bag, a projection portion projecting from the upstream side, and

the projection portion is disposed at an end surface of the folded air bag adjacent the vehicle'"'"'s exterior so that the projection portion faces the vertical wall portion of the restraining member.

17. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 13

, wherein

the portion of the air bag providing the focused and intensified force against the lid includes an expansion portion into which the expanding gas can flow, and a non-expansion portion into which the expanding gas can not flow,

a cut portion of the periphery of the air bag vertically bent towards the vehicle'"'"'s exterior is provided at an edge of the expansion portion

said cut portion disposed at an end surface of the folded air bag so that the cut portion faces the vertical wall portion of the restraining member.

18. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 1

, further comprising a restraining member, disposed at an upper position of the pillar portion, for preventing the air bag at the time of deployment engaging the pillar, wherein

the restraining member includes a substantially L-shaped section including a vertical wall portion and a horizontal wall portion extending from a lower end of the vertical wall portion toward the vehicle'"'"'s inner side,

the vertical wall portion supporting an outer side of the folded air bag,

the horizontal wall portion supports a lower end of the folded air bag,

the air bag having a flat, unfolded orentation that is folded in a bellows fasion in a substantially vertical direction from the lower edge to the upper edge,

the portion of the air bag providing the focused and intensified force against the lid is formed so that an upper side flow path is disposed at the upper edge side of the air bag and through which the gas for expansion can flow, and a lower edge side flow path which is disposed at the lower edge side of the air bag and through which the expanding gas can flow, and

with the flow rate of expanding gas for expansion in the lower flow path being larger than the flow rate of expanding gas through the upper flow path.

19. An air bag apparatus according to

claim 1

, further comprising a restraining member, disposed at an upper position of the pillar portion, for preventing the air bag at the time of deployment from engaging the pillar garnish, wherein

the restraining member includes a substantially L-shaped section including a vertical wall portion and a horizontal wall portion extending from a lower end of the vertical wall portion toward the vehicle'"'"'s inner side,

the vertical wall portion supporting an outer side of the folded air bag,

the horizontal wall portion supports a lower end of the folded air bag,

the portion of the air bag providing the focused and intensified force against the lid includes a flexible wrapping sheet covering the folded air bag,

an upper end of the wrapping sheet being fixed to the upper edge of the air bag,

a lower end of the wrapping sheet being wound around the inner side of the folded air bag and into contact with the horizontal wall portion of the restraining member, and further, the lower end side is inserted between folds of the folded air bag at the outer side of the folded air bag, and is held there between, and

the wrapping sheet having front and back surfaces, the front surface being brought into contact with the horizontal wall portion, the front surface having a frictional resistance that is less than a frictional resistance of the back surface brought into contact with the air bag.