Air bag

• US 5,865,464 A
• Filed: 07/29/1996
• Issued: 02/02/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Airbags International Limited (Autoliv Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Asahi Kasei Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Kanuma, Tadao, Isobe, Tosio, Yuuki, Yasunori
• Primary Examiner(s): Ellis, Christopher P.
• Application Number:
  US08/682,766
• Time in Patent Office: 918 Days
• Field of Search: 280/743.1, 280/727, 383/3, 383/117, 428/35.2, 139/384 R
• US Class Current: 280/743.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23547 one piece weaving
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/2342 Tear seams
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/235 characterised by their material
• CPC Class Codes: D03D 1/02 Inflatable articles

Abstract

An uncoated hollow weave air bag composed of a hollow weave fabric in which the circumferential periphery of the hollow part shaping the bag body is joined by a band of one layer bind weave, the hollow weave air bag satisfying the condition 1! - 3! below: 1! the weave constituting cloth A forming the hollow part of the bag body is a plain weave and the cover factor of cloth A being 2000≦K≦2300, 2! the weave constituting cloth B which is the other cloth forming said hollow part, and the ratio of gas permeability at a pressure of 19.6 kpa for cloth B (qB) to that of cloth A (qA), qB/qA satisfies a relation 1≦qB/qA≦2.2, 5! an opening (6) for attachment of the gas generator is provided in part of cloth B. The air bag of the present invention can be produced in a simplified manufacturing process and is light weight, less bulky and excellent in its safe inflation characteristics.

Claims

1. An uncoated hollow weave air bag comprising a hollow weave fabric which is composed of two layers of cloths enclosing the hollow of the air bag,

the two layers of cloths being joined together around the circumference of the hollow by a one layer bind weave band;

one of the cloths confines said hollow on the side of the air bag which faces the vehicle occupant;

the remaining other cloth confines said hollow on the bottom side of the air bag; and

the cloth confining the hollow on the vehicle occupant side of the air bag and said remaining other cloth confining the hollow on the bottom side of the air bag satisfy the relationships as represented below;

1! the cloth confining the hollow on the vehicle occupant side of the air bag is a plain wave cloth having a cover factor (K) as defined by the following formula,

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">2000≦

K≦

2,300

wherein K=Kt+Kw

Kt=warp yarn (ends/inch)×

√

denier of a warp yarn

Kw=weft yarn (picks/inch)×

√

denier of a weft yarn

2! a gas permeabilities (qA) and (qB) at 19.6 kPa of said cloth confining the hollow on the vehicle occupant side and said remaining other cloth confining said hollow on the bottom side of the air bag have the relation defined below;

qA≦

qB

wherein qB is the gas permeability of said remaining other cloth confining the hollow on the bottom side of the air bag excluding the gas permeability of a vent hole portion provided in part in said remaining other cloth on the bottom side of the air bag.

2. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 1, wherein said one layer bind weave band is provided with an outermost circumferential margin band having a stiffness factor value of not greater than 28, said stiffness factor value being represented by the formula below:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">S=N/(L×

U)

wherein, N represents the total number (yarn/inch) of the warp and weft densities of the weave as expressed in terms of 420 denier as converted, L stands for the number of layers of the weave and U stands for the sum total of the warp and weft yarns in the weave repeat.

3. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 1 or 2, in which said one layer bind weave band is composed of a plain weave or a rib weave, and said plain weave band of the outermost circumferential margin portion is constituted of a more open weave construction than a plain weave.

4. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 1, in which the cloth confining said hollow on the side of the air bag facing the vehicle occupant and the cloth confining the bottom side of said air bag are linked or connected by inflation limiting yarns by means of either by being woven or being sewn, and said one layer bind weave band is provided with an outermost circumference margin portion having a stiffness factor value of not greater than 28, and said stiffness factor value being represented by the formula below:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">S=N/(L×

U)

wherein, N represents the total number (yarn/inch) of the warp and weft densities for the weave as expressed in terms of 420 denier converted, L stands for the number of layers of the weave, and U stands for the total of the warp and weft yarns in the weave repeat.

5. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 1 or 2, in which the cloth confining said hollow on the side of the air bag facing the vehicle occupant and the cloth confining the bottom side of said air bag satisfying the following relationship;

1! a gas permeability at 19.6 kPa of the cloth confining said hollow on the side of the air bag facing the vehicle occupant (qA) is not greater than 100 cc/cm² /sec;

2! a ratio (qB/qA) of a gas permeability at 19.6 kPa of the cloth confining the bottom side of said air bag qB to qA is 1≦

qB/qA≦

2.2; and

3! a permeating gas volume (Q) at 1.96 kPa is 1≦

Q≦

15 m³ /min.

6. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 1 or 2, in which the cloth confining said hollow on the bottom is woven in part in a more open meshed construction so as to form a vent filter portion.

7. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 1 or 2, in which the cloth confining said hollow on the bottom side of said air bag is provided with an opening for attachment of the gas generator.

8. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 1, in which the cloth confining said hollow on the side of the air bag facing the vehicle occupant and the cloth confining said hollow on the bottom side of said air bag are linked or connected by inflation limiting yarns by either being woven or being sewn, and said one layer bind weave band is provided with the outermost circumference margin portion having a stiffness factor value of not greater than 28, and said stiffness factor value being represented by the formula below:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">S=N/(L×

U)

wherein, N represents the sum total number (yarn/inch) of the warp and weft densities for the weave as expressed in terms of 420 denier converted, L stands for the number of layers of the weave and U stands for the total of the warp and weft yarns in the weave repeat.

9. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 8, in which the cloth confining said hollow at the bottom is provided with a reinforcing weave, formed by reinforcing yarns which is woven-in around the periphery of said opening for attachment of the gas generator.

10. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to any one of the claims 1, 4, 8 or 9, wherein the outermost circumference margin portion of said one layer bind weave band is composed of a multilayer weave band or a opened weave band.

11. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to any one of the claims 1, 2, 4, 8, or 9 wherein the yarn constituting said hollow weave fabric is of nylon 66 fiber or polyethlenetelephthalate fiber yarn.

12. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 9, in which the cloth confining said hollow on the bottom side of said air bag is provided with a reinforcing weave around the periphery portion of the opening for attachment of the gas generator, said reinforcing weave is woven in a ratio of the sum total value of denier (TD) of the warp and weft yarn denier per unit area of said reinforcing weave to the sum total value of denier (TD'"'"') per unit area of the warp and weft yarn denier constituting the weave area where no reinforcing yarns are incorporated is 1.5≦

TD/TD'"'"'≦

4, a vent filter portion being provided within the plane area of said reinforcing weave, and said vent filter portion being woven in a more open and more gas permeable weave construction than that of the weave area where no reinforcing yarns are incorporated.

13. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 9, wherein the cloth confining said hollow on the bottom side of the air bag is provided with a vent filter portion having a more open weave construction, said vent filter being disposed at a position within an area satisfying the following range on the coordinate X-Y (x, Y);

-a≦

x≦

a and -b≦

y≦

b

in which X represents the coordinate axis running in the direction parallel to the weft yarns through the geometrical center point of said cloth, Y represents the coordinate axis running in the direction of the warp yarn through said center point of said cloth, 2a represents the total length of said cloth along the X axis, and 2b represents the total length of said cloth along the Y axis.

14. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 7, wherein a reinforcing cloth piece is adhesively bonded around the circumferential area of said opening for attachment of the gas generator.

15. An uncoated hollow weave air bag according to claim 1, 4, or 8 in which the cloth confining said hollow on the side of the air bag facing the vehicle occupant and the cloth confining said hollow on the bottom side of said air bag are radially joined in part by sewn seams of yarns which are breakable at the moment of said air bag deployment around the opening for attachment of the gas generator so that the impact of the protruding energy of said air bag is absorbed at the moment of deployment of said air bag, and thereby enabling control of the shape of the air bag in the course of inflating.

17. A base fabric for making an air bag according to claim 15, wherein said one layer bind weave band is provided with a outermost circumference margin band having a stiffness factor value of not greater than 28, and said stiffness factor value being represented by the formula below:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">S=N/(L×

U)

wherein, N represents the total number (yarn/inch) of the warp and weft densities of the weave as expressed in terms of 420 denier converted, L stands for the number of layers of the weave and U stands for the total of the warp and weft yarns in the weave repeat.

16. A base fabric for making an air bag which is composed of two layers of cloth in composite joined together around the circumference of a hollow by a one layer bind weave band, one of said layer of cloths being a plain wave fabric having a gas permeability at 19.6 kPa of not greater than 100 cc/cm² /sec and having a cover factor(K) of 2000≦

K≦

2,300 as defined by formula 1!, and the remaining other layer of the cloths having a gas permeability at 19.6 kPa of greater than 100 cc/cm² /sec;

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">K=Kt+Kw 1!

and in the formula;

Kt=warp yarn (ends/inch)×

√

denier of a warp yarn

Kw=weft yarn (picks/inch)×

√

denier of a weft yarn.

18. A fabric for making an air bag according to claim 16, wherein yarn constituting said hollow weave fabric is made from nylon 66 fiber or polyethlenetelephthalate fiber.