Steering wheel equipped with airbag device

• US 20070024035A1
• Filed: 07/19/2006
• Published: 02/01/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mazda Motor Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mazda Motor Corporation
• Inventors: Kaneko, Naoki, Fukushima, Masanobu, Kobayashi, Akihiro, Funahashi, Ryoji, Sasaki, Yasunori, Yamachi, Ippei
• Granted Patent: US 7,484,754 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 280/731
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/21543 with emblems
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/21656 Steering wheel covers or similar cup-shaped covers
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/231 characterised by their shape, construction or spatial configuration

Abstract

A ring portion of a steering wheel is disposed to be inclined relative to a vertical direction with an inclined angle between 40 and 90 degrees, when viewed from a vehicle width direction, and a bag portion has a larger configuration than the ring portion so as to cover over the ring portion when an airbag inflation is completed. Accordingly, there can be provided the steering wheel equipped with the so-called donut type of airbag portion of a airbag device that can perform its advantages fully and thereby improve the driver'"'"'s protection.

Claims

1. A steering wheel equipped with an airbag device, comprising:

a ring portion to be griped by a driver;

a pad portion coupled to said ring portion via a spoke portion and located at a central portion of the ring portion; and

an airbag device disposed in said pad portion,

wherein said airbag device comprises a bag portion that is accommodated in said pad portion substantially in a ring shape, when viewed from the driver, and operative to inflate toward a driver'"'"'s head at a vehicle frontal crash, part of said pad portion located on a side of the driver includes a cover member that comprises a fixed cover portion that is located at a central portion of the bag portion and does not open at inflation of the bag portion and an open cover portion that is disposed around the fixed cover portion and opens outside so as to form a substantially-ring-shaped opening portion through which the bag portion inflates toward the driver'"'"'s head at the inflation of the bag portion, said ring portion is disposed to be inclined relative to a vertical direction with an inclined angle between 40 and 90 degrees, when viewed from a vehicle width direction, and said bag portion has a larger configuration than said ring portion so as to cover over the ring portion when the inflation is completed.

2. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 1, wherein a front-side part of said open cover portion that is located forward relative to the fixed cover portion in a vehicle traveling direction is configured so as to open forward around a hinge portion that is located near a front-side end of the cover member on an opposite side to a location of a driver'"'"'s head relative to said ring portion.

3. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 2, wherein a meter is provided at an instrument panel in front of said ring portion, and part of said cover member that extends forward in the vehicle traveling direction from a front-side boundary of the fixed cover portion and the front-side part of the open cover portion to the front-side end of the cover member is configured so as to be inclined toward the opposite side to the location of the driver'"'"'s head, whereby the driver can have a view of the meter through a front-side space formed between the pad portion and the ring portion.

4. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 1, wherein an outer peripheral portion of said fixed cover portion that is located on a side of a location of a driver'"'"'s head is configured so as to be disposed substantially on the same level as an inner peripheral portion of said open cover portion or to project toward the driver'"'"'s head.

5. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 1, wherein said fixed cover portion is of a substantially circular shape when viewed from the driver'"'"'s-head side.

6. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 1, wherein said pad portion is provided relative to said ring portion in a vehicle traveling direction such that a distance between a front-side end of said cover member of the pad portion and a front-side end of an inner peripheral portion of the ring portion is greater than a distance between a rear-side end of the cover member of the pad portion and a rear-side end of the inner peripheral portion of the ring portion, a rear-side part of the ring portion is configured to be deformable by hitting of a driver'"'"'s body moving forward at the vehicle frontal crash, said open cover portion is comprised of a plurality of parts that open separately at the inflation of the bag portion, and a rear-side part of said open cover portion that is located rearward relative to the fixed cover portion is configured so as to open laterally around a hinge portion that is located near a side end of the cover member of the pad portion.

7. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 6, wherein said hinge portion of the rear-side part of the open cover portion is located near a connecting portion of the pad portion to the spoke portion, and said rear-side part of the open cover portion is configured to open over the spoke portion.

8. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 1, wherein said pad portion is provided relative to said ring portion in a vehicle traveling direction such that a distance between a front-side end of said cover member of the pad portion and a front-side end of an inner peripheral portion of the ring portion is greater than a distance between a rear-side end of the cover member of the pad portion and a rear-side end of the inner peripheral portion of the ring portion, a rear-side part of the ring portion is configured to be deformable by hitting of a driver'"'"'s body moving forward at the vehicle frontal crash, said open cover portion is comprised of a plurality of parts that open separately at the inflation of the bag portion, and a rear-side part of said open cover portion that is located rearward relative to the fixed cover portion is configured so as to open rearward around a hinge portion that is located near a rear end of the cover member of the pad portion, whereby the rear-side part of the cover member can open and move forward getting through a space formed between the pad portion and the ring portion.

9. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 1, wherein said pad portion is provided relative to said ring portion in a vehicle traveling direction such that a distance between a front-side end of said cover member of the pad portion and a front-side end of an inner peripheral portion of the ring portion is greater than a distance between a rear-side end of the cover member of the pad portion and a rear-side end of the inner peripheral portion of the ring portion, said open cover portion is comprised of a plurality of parts that open separately at the inflation of the bag portion, and a rear-side part of said open cover portion that is located rearward relative to the fixed cover portion is configured so as to be supported partially at the pad portion and open without contacting a rear-side part of the ring portion, whereby the rear-side part of the open cover portion that has opened does not cover a space formed between the pad portion and the ring portion.

10. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 9, wherein an operational switch for an onboard device is provided near a rear-side end of said pad portion behind said rear-side part of the open cover portion.

11. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 9, wherein a portion of said rear-side part of said open cover portion that is supported at the pad portion is a hinge portion that is provided near a side end of the cover member of the pad portion, and the rear-side part of the open cover portion is configured so as to open laterally around the hinge portion.

12. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 1, wherein said bag portion is configured to inflate in such a manner that the bag portion gets out of said opening portion formed by opening of the open cover portion and expands with a hollow portion of thereof that is formed at a central portion of the bag portion above said fixed cover portion and shrinks gradually according to an expansion of the bag portion, and that when the bag portion is substantially fully inflated, an inner peripheral surface of the shrinking hollow portion contacts each other with a substantial elimination of the hollow portion, whereby a face of the driver can hit against a central portion of a top end face of the bag portion where the eliminated hollow portion is located at the vehicle frontal crash.

13. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 12, wherein there is provided a seatbelt device to restrict a forward movement of the driver at the vehicle frontal crash within a specified range.

14. The steering wheel equipped with an airbag device of claim 12, wherein said airbag device is configured such that an amount of gas that is supplied to said bag portion when an impact of the vehicle frontal crash is relatively low is smaller than that when the impact of the vehicle frontal crash is relatively high.