Occupant protection apparatus

• US 7,322,606 B2
• Filed: 11/02/2006
• Issued: 01/29/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamamura, Daisuke, Inoue, Michio
• Primary Examiner(s): Dickson; Paul N.
• Assistant Examiner(s): TO, TOAN C
• Application Number:
  US11/591,495
• Publication Number:
  US 20070102126A1
• Time in Patent Office: 453 Days
• Field of Search: 280/748, 280/749, 280/730.2
• US Class Current: 280/748
• CPC Class Codes: B60J 1/2025 with flexible actuating elements connected to the draw bar for pulling only, e.g. cords, wires or cables
• CPC Class Codes: B60J 1/2086 specially adapted for openable windows, e.g. side window
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0018 Roll-over
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/08 automatically movable from an inoperative to an operative position, e.g. in a collision electrical circuits for triggering safety arrangements B60R21/01

Abstract

An occupant protection apparatus includes a cover sheet adapted to be fed out from a peripheral edge of a window of a vehicle, when a pulling unit is activated, so as to cover the window. The pulling unit includes a pulling string having flexibility and a pulling device to which the pulling string is connected so as to be pulled thereby and which is disposed below the window. When the pulling device is activated, the pulling string is pulled such that a portion thereof which extends from a fixed end to where it is supported by a support member becomes a straight line while a portion thereof which is disposed along a lower edge portion of the peripheral edge of the window is caused to rise. The cover sheet includes a passageway portion through which the pulling string is passed on an upper side part thereof and is folded to be accommodated in the window only along the lower edge side of the peripheral edge thereof with the portion of the pulling string which has not yet been activated inserted into the passageway portion so as to be staying therein.

Claims

1. An occupant protection apparatus adapted to cover a window in a vehicle, comprising:

a window peripheral edge including an upper edge portion and a lower edge portion, the window being defined between the lower edge portion and the upper edge portion of the window peripheral edge;

a cover sheet having an upper side part and a lower side part, for covering almost a whole area of the window,

wherein the cover sheet is accommodated in the lower edge portion of the window peripheral edge such that the lower side part of the cover sheet as a stationary side is fixed substantially entirely along the lower edge portion of the window peripheral edge, and the upper side part of the cover sheet as a moving side to be pulled is located adjacent to the lower side part by folding the cover sheet; and

a pulling unit including a pulling string having flexibility and a pulling device disposed below the window to pull the pulling string,

wherein one end of the pulling string as a fixed end is fixed to a first side upper end portion of the window peripheral edge located on one of a front and rear sides of the window,

another end of the pulling string as a proximal end is led to the pulling device through the lower edge portion of the window peripheral edge and a second upper end portion of the window peripheral edge located on the other of the front and rear sides of the window peripheral edge, and

the pulling string is slidably guided around a support member provided at the second upper end portion of the window peripheral edge to reverse a pulling direction of the pulling string;

wherein when the pulling unit is activated, the pulling string is pulled to the pulling device to be linearly led between the first upper end portion and the second upper end portion, whereby the pulling string lifts the moving side of the cover sheet from the lower edge portion of the window peripheral edge top spread the cover sheet from the lower edge portion of the window to cover the window;

wherein the cover sheet includes a passageway portion through which the pulling string is slidably inserted in a vicinity of a front side and a rear side of the upper side part of the cover sheet, the passageway portion is accommodated before the pulling string is activated.

2. An occupant protection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the upper side part of the cover sheet is formed into a tubular shape over a whole area from the front end to the rear end thereof, so as to constitute the passageway portion.

3. An occupant protection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a stopper mechanism is provided on the upper side part of the cover sheet so that the passageway portion lies toward the support member as well as on the pulling string such that constituent parts of the stopper mechanism are brought into engagement with each other to prevent the upper side part of the cover sheet where the passageway portion is provided from returning back toward the fixed end of the pulling material when the cover sheet is completely deployed.

4. An occupant protection apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a height of the fixed end of the pulling string and a height of the support member is set such that the pulling string extending from the fixed end to the support member is kept farther away from the lower edge portion of the window peripheral edge at a support member end than at the fixed end thereof when the cover sheet is completely deployed, and

wherein the cover sheet is set such that the upper side part moves away from the lower side part thereof so as to correspond to height-wise positions of the fixed end of the pulling string and the support member so set.

5. An occupant protection apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a secondary stopper mechanism is provided on the upper side part of the cover sheet so that the passageway portion lies toward the fixed end of the pulling string as well as the pulling string such that constituent parts of the secondary mechanism are brought into engagement with each other so as to prevent the upper side part of the cover sheet where the passageway portion is provided from moving toward the support member when the cover sheet is completely deployed.

6. An occupant protection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a substantially vertically extending rod-like guide rail is provided on at least either of the front and rear sides of the window peripheral edge, and

wherein the cover sheet includes a locking portion provided on either of front and rear edges thereof which corresponds to the guide rail when the cover sheet covers the window so as to slidably lock on to the guide rail so as to restrict the movement of the cover sheet toward a center of the window when the cover sheet covers the window.

7. An occupant protection apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the guide rail is provided with a portion of the pulling string which extends from the support member where the pulling string reverses its pulling direction toward the pulling device.