Knee protecting airbag device

• US 20030094795A1
• Filed: 11/20/2002
• Published: 05/22/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Suzuki, Kazumasa, Takimoto, Masahiro, Koyama, Toru, Mizuno, Yoshio
• Granted Patent: US 7,055,851 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 280/730.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23169 specially adapted for knee protection
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23382 Internal tether means
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/206 in the lower part of dashboards, e.g. for protecting the knees
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/2165 characterised by a tear line for defining a deployment opening
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/2171 specially adapted for elongated cylindrical or bottle-like inflators with a symmetry axis perpendicular to the main direction of bag deployment, e.g. extruded reaction canisters B60R21/2176 takes precedence
• 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: B60R 21/237 characterised by the way they are folded

Abstract

A knee protecting airbag device in which a folded airbag and an inflator are housed and held in a case. In the inflator, a connection portion to be connected with a connector having leadwires connected is exposed to the outside of the case through insert holes formed in the airbag and in the case. The through hole of the case has an internal diameter size smaller than the external diameter size of the general portion of the inflator near the connection portion of the inflator.

Claims

1. A knee protecting airbag device comprising:

a folded airbag;

an inflator for feeding an inflating gas to said airbag; and

a case for housing and holding said airbag folded and said inflator,

wherein said airbag can be expanded and inflated to the front of the knees of a seated passenger;

wherein said inflator is housed in a portion of said airbag which after said airbag has completed inflation is still held in said case;

wherein said inflator is connected with lead wires for inputting an activation signal;

wherein said inflator is constructed such that the connection portion to be connected with said lead wires is exposed to the outside of said case through insert holes formed in said airbag and said case; and

wherein the insert hole of said case has an internal diameter size made smaller than either the external diameter of the connection portion of said inflator or the external diameter size of the general portion of said inflator near said connection portion.

2. A knee protecting airbag device according to claim 1,

wherein the connection portion of said inflator is protruded to the outside of said case through said insert hole of said case, and

wherein the general portion of said inflator which is near said connection portion is made to have a larger external diameter size than the internal diameter size of the insert hole of said case.

3. A knee protecting airbag device according to claim 1,

wherein said inflator is formed into a column shape, in which its axial direction is arranged in the transverse direction of a vehicle, and is mounted on the vehicle such that said connection portion is arranged on an end portion in the axial direction of said inflator and on the vehicular outer side of the end portion in the transverse direction of the vehicle.

4. A knee protecting airbag device,

wherein a knee protecting airbag is folded and housed in a case arranged in front of the knees of a seated passenger and is protruded toward the rear of the vehicle from said case when an inflating gas flows in, so that it is expanded and inflated upward while being unfolded,

wherein said case is provided with a surrounding wall portion of a generally square tube shape opened on the rear side of the vehicle, and a bottom wall portion closing the vehicular front side of said surrounding wall portion, and

wherein said case has a height near the opening larger than the height of said bottom wall portion and which expands at the leading edge of said opening when said airbag is expanded and inflated.

5. A knee protecting airbag device according to claim 4,

wherein the lower wall portion of said case surrounding wall portion is arranged so that its opening side end is higher than its bottom wall portion side end.

6. A knee protecting airbag device according to claim 5,

wherein the upper wall portion in said case surrounding wall portion can be deformed to expand said case opening when said airbag is expanded and inflated.

7. A knee protecting airbag device,

wherein a knee protecting airbag folded is housed in a case arranged in front of the knees of a seated passenger and is protruded toward the rear of the vehicle from said case when an inflating gas flows in, so that it is expanded and inflated upward while being unfolded,

wherein said case is provided with a surrounding wall portion of a generally square tube shape opened on the rear side of the vehicle, and a bottom wall portion closing the vehicular front side of said surrounding wall portion,

wherein said airbag is folded and housed such that the two transverse edge sides of the portion folded with transverse fold lines are folded either over the upper side or beneath the lower side up close to the central portion of the folded portion, and

wherein said case is made deformable at the upper wall portion or the lower wall portion of said case surrounding wall portion so that the height in the vicinity of the opening may be enlarged when said airbag is expanded and inflated.

8. A knee protecting airbag device according to claim 7,

wherein the wall portion, as located on the folding side of the two edges of said airbag, in said case peripheral wall portion is made deformable.

9. A knee protecting airbag device according to claim 8,

wherein said airbag is folded such that the two transverse edge sides are folded beneath the lower side near the central portion of the folded portion.