Airbag apparatus

• US 20090045607A1
• Filed: 08/07/2008
• Published: 02/19/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Ozaki, Toru, Nonoyama, Yuki, Murase, Hiroki, Fukuyama, Takaki, Okada, Yasushi, Shiga, Ichizo, Fukurono, Kenichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,874,575 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 280/728.200
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/217 Inflation fluid source retainers, e.g. reaction canisters; Connection of bags, covers, diffusers or inflation fluid sources therewith or together
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/26 characterised by the inflation fluid source or means to control inflation fluid flow arrangement or mounting thereof to the vehicle B60R21/20; blasting cartridges for producing gas under pressure in general F42B3/04; initiators or igniters therefor F42B3/10
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/261 with means other than bag structure to diffuse or guide inflation fluid

Abstract

The airbag apparatus is provided with a retainer that includes a hold-down portion for attachment of a periphery of a gas inlet of an airbag to the case, a cover wall surrounding an inflator body, deflectors and catches. The cover wall includes a plurality of outlet ports for releasing inflation gas exited discharge ports of the inflator body radially. The deflectors deflect the inflation gas exited the outlet ports in a range of angle from a direction orthogonal to an axis of the inflator body to a downward direction extending toward the hold-down portion. The catches capture residual particles contained in the inflation gas when the gas deflected by the deflectors hit them.

Claims

1. An airbag apparatus comprising:

an airbag including an inlet port for introducing inflation gas;

a pyrotechnic inflator that generates a gas for inflating the airbag by chemical reaction, the inflator including a columnar body that includes on and along an outer circumference of an upper part thereof discharge ports for discharging the gas;

a case that houses the airbag in a folded state and holds the inflator, the case including an insert hole for receiving the upper part of the inflator body where the discharge ports are located and a mounting seat arranged around the insert hole on an upper face of the case to which mounting seat a peripheral region of the inlet port of the airbag is attached;

an annular retainer that attaches the peripheral region of the inlet port of the airbag to the mounting seat of the case, the retainer including a hold-down portion that holds down the peripheral region of the inlet port of the airbag and is mounted on the case;

a cover wall having a tubular contour and disposed around and proximate the outer circumference of the inflator body set in the case in such a manner as to extend upwardly from the vicinity of an inner edge of the hold-down portion of the retainer, the cover wall including a plurality of outlet ports formed intermittently to face the circumference of the inflator body so as to release the gas exited the discharge ports of the inflator body generally in a direction orthogonal to an axis of the inflator body and radially about the inflator body;

a plurality of deflectors formed to oppose the outlet ports on the outside of the cover wall and above the hold-down portion of the retainer for deflecting the gas exited the outlet ports of the cover wall away from the outlet ports and within a range of angle from the direction orthogonal to the axis of the inflator body to a downward direction extending toward the hold-down portion; and

a plurality of catches that are located around the outlet ports outside of the cover wall for capturing residual particles contained in the gas when receiving the gas deflected by the deflectors.

2. The airbag apparatus of claim 1 wherein the plurality of outlet ports are equal in number to the discharge ports of the inflator body and each of the outlet ports is located on an extension of a discharging direction of a gas exiting from one specific discharge port corresponding to the outlet port.

3. The airbag apparatus of claim 2 wherein a clearance is formed between the cover wall and the outer circumference of the inflator body.

4. The airbag apparatus of claim 2 wherein peripheries of the outlet ports on an inner surface of the cover wall abut against peripheries of the discharge ports on the outer circumference of the inflator body.

5. The airbag apparatus of claim 1 wherein the cover wall includes a restriction wall that connects an upper hem of each of the outlet ports and an upper end of each of the deflectors for preventing an upward outflow of inflation gas.

6. The airbag apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

each of the deflectors is formed to stand vertically on a radially extending position about the axial center of the inflator body at each of the outlet ports;

each of the deflectors is provided, between both ends thereof in the circumferential direction of the inflator body and the cover wall, with clearances each of which acts as an exit hole that releases inflation gas toward opposite directions along the circumferential direction of the inflator body after the gas hit the deflector; and

each of the deflectors concurrently acts as the catch that includes on a side opposing the outlet port a catching plane that captures residual particles of the gas when the gas exits from the exit holes.

7. The airbag apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

each of the deflectors has such a contour as deflects an inflation gas exited the outlet port downward toward the hold-down portion and includes an exit hole at a lower edge thereof located above the hold-down portion by a clearance for releasing the gas hit the deflector along the hold-down portion and radially about the axial center of the inflator body; and

regions on a top plane of the hold-down portion opposing the exit holes act as the catches for capturing residual particles of the gas.

8. The airbag apparatus of claim 1 wherein the retainer includes an outer tubular portion having a tubular contour that is continuous with an entire outer circumference of the hold-down portion and is greater in height than a top of the cover wall.

9. The airbag apparatus of claim 1 wherein the cover wall is formed on the case to extend upwardly from a periphery of the insert hole of the case.

10. The airbag apparatus of claim 9 wherein:

the case is made of sheet metal;

the cover wall includes a plurality of lugs disposed intermittently along the periphery of the insert hole to include each one said outlet port, the lugs being continuous with a bottom wall of the case as a result of cutting and raising portions of the sheet metal on a location of the insert hole on the bottom wall; and

the retainer includes a generally cylindrical ring post that extends upwardly from the hold-down portion and surrounds the lugs to support the lugs for preventing such deformation of the lugs as back away from the inflator body.

11. The airbag apparatus of claim 10 wherein:

each of the lugs includes a restriction wall that connects an upper hem of the outlet port and an upper end of the deflector for preventing an upward outflow of inflation gas;

the ring post includes at a top region thereof a support wall for supporting the lugs and apertures located below the support wall for receiving the deflectors from an inner side; and

the lugs are so configured as to bend upwardly such that the deflectors are put through the apertures of the ring post when pushed by the inflator body set in the insert hole of the case from the lower side.

12. The airbag apparatus of claim 1 wherein the cover wall is formed on the retainer to extend upwardly from the inner edge of the hold-down portion of the retainer.

13. The airbag apparatus of claim 12 wherein the retainer includes a flange that extends up to the vicinity of an inner edge of the insert hole of the case at a lower side of the outlet ports.

14. The airbag apparatus of claim 13 wherein:

the retainer is comprised of;

an upper part that constitutes an upper side of the hold-down portion including the cover wall and deflectors, the upper part including at an outermost region thereof an annular attachment ring provided with a plurality of attaching elements for attaching the whole retainer to the periphery of the insert hole of the case; and

a lower part that constitutes a lower side of the hold-down portion, the lower part including the flange of the retainer, an annular hold-down ring provided with through holes for receiving the attaching elements, and an outer tubular portion that is formed continuous with an entire outer circumference of the hold-down portion outside of the attachment ring of the upper part and is greater in height than a top of the cover wall.