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Air bag activated knee bolster

  • US 5,536,043 A
  • Filed: 09/12/1995
  • Issued: 07/16/1996
  • Est. Priority Date: 05/23/1994
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. An air bag activated knee bolster which is deployed in an instrument panel of an automotive vehicle during a crash to a proper location to provide lower torso restraint for an occupant seated therein comprising,a support member means located behind a downward and forwardly inclined portion of said instrument panel of the vehicle,a housing securely mounted to said support member means,an inflator mounted in said housing,a folded air bag stored in said housing,a knee bolster panel for said inflator and said air bag stored in said housing, said panel also comprising the door for an air bag deployment opening that is formed in a portion of said instrument panel of said automotive vehicle, said knee bolster panel having a forward facing side,attaching means positioning said knee bolster panel in the air bag deployment opening that is formed in said portion of the instrument panel of the automotive vehicle, andtether means to limit the rearward movement of said knee bolster panel during deployment, said tether means being located internally of said folded air bag and comprising spaced parallel tethers and at least one diagonal tether, with a first end of each of said tethers attached to said housing at a position substantially midway the width thereof, the first end of each of said parallel tethers being attached to said housing at different elevations, and the second end of each of said tethers attached to the forward facing side of said knee bolster panel at a position substantially midway the width thereof, with the attachment of the first end of said diagonal tether to said housing being adjacent the most elevated of the parallel tether first end attachments thereto, and with the attachment of the second end of said diagonal tether to said knee bolster panel being adjacent the least elevated of the parallel tether second end attachments thereto,said knee bolster panel when deployed being forced to move along an arc determined by the length of said diagonal tether with said arc extending rearward and upward, which action reduces the impact loading on the tethers,whereby the inflated air bag in combination with said tether means positions said knee bolster panel in the proper location to provide lower torso restraint for the occupant seated in said vehicle.

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