Inflatable air bag for an inflatable restraint system
First Claim
1. An inflatable air bag for restraining an occupant in a seat during a sudden deceleration of a vehicle, the air bag comprising:
- an inflatable envelope of a fabric material;
a fluid-receiving inlet attached to said envelope to receive inflation fluid for inflating said envelope, wherein said inflatable envelope has generally an L shape when inflated, and wherein the L shape comprises;
a torso section for protecting the body of the occupant between the waist and the neck;
a lap section for protecting the body of the occupant between the waist and the knees; and
a rearwardly protruding section extending from the torso section for protecting the body of the occupant below the neck; and
a seat belt connected to one surface of said envelope between the torso and the lap sections forming a waist section allowing fluid communication between said torso and lap sections.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An inflatable air bag, in its uninflated state, is folded against a seat belt that is secured around the waist of a vehicle occupant and is enclosed by a tubular webbing making the assembly appear as a typical seat belt. Upon a sudden deceleration of a vehicle, the air bag inflates and takes an L-shaped form against an occupant of a vehicle. A rearward protrusion from the upright portion of the L bears against the upper torso portion of the occupant. The rearward protrusion does not bear against the face of either a fifth, fiftieth or ninety-fifth percentile occupant. When inflated the air bag in addition to the rearward protrusion, has a torso section, a waist section and a lap section. The waist section functions to bear against the occupant to push the occupant back into the seat. The torso and lap sections function to push the occupant back and down into the seat. The deployment sequence of the inflation of the sections is determined by the method of folding the air bag against the seat belt. A deflation member operates to release the inflation fluid from the air bag a predetermined time after inflation of the air bag.
80 Citations
76 Claims
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1. An inflatable air bag for restraining an occupant in a seat during a sudden deceleration of a vehicle, the air bag comprising:
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an inflatable envelope of a fabric material;
a fluid-receiving inlet attached to said envelope to receive inflation fluid for inflating said envelope, wherein said inflatable envelope has generally an L shape when inflated, and wherein the L shape comprises;
a torso section for protecting the body of the occupant between the waist and the neck;
a lap section for protecting the body of the occupant between the waist and the knees; and
a rearwardly protruding section extending from the torso section for protecting the body of the occupant below the neck; and
a seat belt connected to one surface of said envelope between the torso and the lap sections forming a waist section allowing fluid communication between said torso and lap sections. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
a deflation member for allowing the inflation fluid to escape from said envelope, wherein said deflation member is connected to a control system.
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29. The air bag according to claim 28 wherein said deflation member is a heated element in contact with said envelope.
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30. The air bag according to claim 28 wherein said deflation member is a pyrotechnic fuse.
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31. The air bag according to claim 28 wherein said deflation member is an output of a pyrotechnic material.
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32. A method of manufacturing an inflatable seat belt assembly for restraining an occupant in a vehicle during a sudden deceleration of the vehicle, the method comprising the steps of:
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cutting a unitary flat pattern from a fabric material;
folding the unitary flat pattern to create a folded pocket with a perimeter;
securing the folded pocket along the perimeter to create an envelope with two ends, wherein the envelope has an aperture between the two ends;
attaching in a leak-tight manner, a fluid-receiving inlet to the aperture;
connecting a first broadside surface of the envelope to a rear side of a seat belt between the two ends of the envelope with stitches, wherein the seat belt divides the envelope into a torso section, a waist section and a lap section, and wherein the stitches extend through the first broadside, surface and through the seat belt;
folding at least one of the lap or torso sections on the stitches and overlapping the other lap or torso section so that the two sections overlie the front side of the seat belt and form a folded envelope; and
enclosing the folded envelope, the fluid-receiving inlet and the seat belt with a frangible tubing. - View Dependent Claims (33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42)
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43. An inflatable seat belt restraint system for restraining an occupant in a seat of a vehicle during the time period that the vehicle is undergoing a sudden deceleration, the inflatable restraint system comprising:
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a seat secured to the vehicle, said seat for normally supporting an occupant, the occupant having a torso body portion, a neck portion, a lap portion including a thigh portion, a waist portion intermediate said body portion and said lap portion and a knee portion;
a seat belt assembly having an elongated webbing secured to the seat at two ends, wherein said webbing has a tongue and buckle at a first end, and wherein said seat belt assembly extends across the occupant for holding the occupant in said seat;
a first sensor responding to the sudden deceleration of the vehicle by generating a first signal;
an envelope folded about said webbing, wherein a portion of said envelope extends on both sides of said webbing, said envelope having a waist section, a torso section and a lap section;
a frangible tubular cover enclosing said envelope and said webbing;
a fluid-receiving tubular inlet member attached to said envelope to receive inflation fluid for inflating said envelope;
an inflator in communication with said fluid-receiving tubular inlet member and said first sensor, wherein, upon generation of said first signal, said inflator supplies inflation fluid to said envelope, and wherein said inflation fluid inflates said waist section of said envelope between said webbing the occupant for tightening said webbing;
wherein said envelope has generally an L shape when inflated, and wherein the L shape comprises said torso section for protecting the body of the occupant between the waist and the neck, said lap section for protecting the body of the occupant between the waist and the knees, and a rearwardly protruding section extending from the torso section for protecting the body of the occupant below the neck, and wherein said torso section, said waist section, said rearwardly protruding section and said lap section of said envelope applies a pressure against said body of the occupant during the sudden deceleration of the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69)
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70. In an inflatable envelope, a vent for releasing gas from the inflatable envelope, the vent comprising:
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a deflation member connected to one surface of the inflatable envelope;
a pair of wires electrically connecting said deflation member and an igniting device for actuating said deflation member;
a control system comprising at least one sensor capable of generating a signal, and wherein upon receiving said signal said control system actuates said igniting device, thereby releasing the gas. - View Dependent Claims (71, 72)
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73. A vent for deflating an inflatable envelope, wherein the envelope is formed of a fabric material and mounted on a seat belt, and wherein a fluid-receiving inlet is in fluid communication with the envelope to receive inflation fluid, the vent comprising:
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a sensor that generates a signal upon sudden deceleration of a vehicle;
a deflation device connected to one surface of the inflatable envelope;
an igniting device in communication with the deflation device; and
a control system in communication with said sensor and said igniting device, wherein upon receiving said signal, the control system actuates said igniting device thereby allowing the inflation fluid to leave the envelope. - View Dependent Claims (74, 75, 76)
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Specification