Inflatable airbag assemblies with lateral and longitudinal tethers
First Claim
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1. An inflatable airbag assembly, comprising:
- an inflatable airbag having two opposing side faces, a rear face, and a front face;
a longitudinal tether coupled to the rear face and extending to the front face, wherein the longitudinal tether comprises a face-proximal portion and a throat-proximal portion, andwherein the face-proximal portion comprises a face attachment region and a face-distal region, and wherein in a deployed configuration, the face attachment region of the face-proximal portion is vertically oriented,wherein the throat-proximal portion comprises a first leg and a second leg,wherein each leg comprises a throat coupling region and a throat-distal region,wherein the throat-distal region of the first leg is vertically spaced from the throat-distal region of the second leg,wherein each of the throat-distal regions of the first and second legs are coupled to opposing ends of the face distal region of the face-proximal portion of the longitudinal tether such that, when in a deployed configuration, the throat-distal region of the throat-proximal portion is vertically oriented; and
a lateral tether that is fixedly attached to each of the side faces and extends between the side faces,wherein the longitudinal tether and the lateral tether are spaced from each other,wherein the longitudinal tether and the lateral tether restrict an inflated shape of the inflatable airbag.
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Abstract
Lateral and longitudinal internal tethers can be used to restrict an inflatable airbag to a predetermined shape when inflated. A longitudinal tether extends from a rear portion or throat portion of the airbag to a front face. The portion of the front face that cushions an occupant can have a concave or planar shape, depending on the lengths of the lateral and/or longitudinal tethers.
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Citations
26 Claims
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1. An inflatable airbag assembly, comprising:
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an inflatable airbag having two opposing side faces, a rear face, and a front face; a longitudinal tether coupled to the rear face and extending to the front face, wherein the longitudinal tether comprises a face-proximal portion and a throat-proximal portion, and wherein the face-proximal portion comprises a face attachment region and a face-distal region, and wherein in a deployed configuration, the face attachment region of the face-proximal portion is vertically oriented, wherein the throat-proximal portion comprises a first leg and a second leg, wherein each leg comprises a throat coupling region and a throat-distal region, wherein the throat-distal region of the first leg is vertically spaced from the throat-distal region of the second leg, wherein each of the throat-distal regions of the first and second legs are coupled to opposing ends of the face distal region of the face-proximal portion of the longitudinal tether such that, when in a deployed configuration, the throat-distal region of the throat-proximal portion is vertically oriented; and a lateral tether that is fixedly attached to each of the side faces and extends between the side faces, wherein the longitudinal tether and the lateral tether are spaced from each other, wherein the longitudinal tether and the lateral tether restrict an inflated shape of the inflatable airbag. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. An inflatable airbag assembly, comprising:
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an inflatable airbag having two opposing side faces, a rear face, and a front face; a longitudinal tether coupled to the rear face and extending to the front face, wherein the longitudinal tether is coupled to the front face, and wherein the longitudinal tether comprises a face-proximal portion and a throat-proximal portion, and wherein the face-proximal portion comprises a face attachment region and a face-distal region, and wherein in a deployed configuration, the face attachment region of the face-proximal portion is vertically oriented, wherein the throat-proximal portion comprises a first leg and a second leg, wherein each leg comprises a throat coupling region and a throat-distal region, wherein the throat-distal region of the first leg is vertically spaced from the throat-distal region of the second leg, wherein each of the throat-distal regions of the first and second legs are coupled to opposing ends of the face distal region of the face-proximal portion of the longitudinal tether such that, when in a deployed configuration, the throat-distal region of the throat-proximal portion is vertically oriented, and wherein in a deployed configuration, the throat coupling region of the throat-proximal portion is horizontally oriented; and
,a lateral tether that is fixedly attached to each of the side faces and extends between the side faces, wherein the longitudinal tether and the lateral tether are spaced from each other, wherein the longitudinal tether and the lateral tether restrict an inflated shape of the inflatable airbag. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An inflatable airbag assembly, comprising:
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an inflatable airbag having two opposing side faces, a rear face, and a front face; a longitudinal tether coupled to the rear face and extending to the front face, wherein the longitudinal tether comprises a face-proximal portion and a throat-proximal portion, and wherein the face-proximal portion comprises a face attachment region and a face-distal region, and wherein in a deployed configuration, the face attachment region of the face-proximal portion is vertically oriented, wherein the face-distal region of the face-proximal portion has opposing ends, wherein the throat-proximal portion comprises a throat-distal region and a throat coupling region, and wherein in a deployed configuration, the throat coupling region of the throat-proximal portion is horizontally oriented, wherein the throat-distal region of the throat-proximal portion extends from the opposing ends of face-distal region of the face-proximal portion such that, when in a deployed configuration, the throat-distal region of the throat-proximal portion is vertically oriented, wherein the face attachment region is attached to the front face of the airbag and the throat coupling region is attached to the rear face of the airbag, and wherein, in a fully inflated configuration, the longitudinal tether transitions along a longitudinal axis of the longitudinal tether from a folded configuration comprising at least one fold to a non-folded configuration between attachment points of the longitudinal tether at the front face and the rear face;
wherein said at least one fold is extending in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the longitudinal tether; and
,a lateral tether that is fixedly attached to each of the side faces and extends between the side faces, wherein the longitudinal tether and the lateral tether are spaced from each other, wherein the longitudinal tether and the lateral tether restrict an inflated shape of the inflatable airbag. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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Specification