Inflatable knee airbag assemblies with cushion fold pattern

• US 8,540,276 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2011
• Issued: 09/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Autoliv ASP Incorporated (Autoliv Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Autoliv ASP Incorporated (Autoliv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Schneider, David W., Whitt, John F. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ilan, Ruth
• Application Number:
  US13/290,856
• Publication Number:
  US 20130113190A1
• Time in Patent Office: 687 Days
• Field of Search: 280/743.1, 280/728.2, 280/730.1, 280/732, 280/730.2
• US Class Current: 280/730.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23169 specially adapted for knee protection
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/206 in the lower part of dashboards, e.g. for protecting the knees
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/237 characterised by the way they are folded

Abstract

An airbag assembly can include a housing and an airbag cushion within the housing in a packaged state. The airbag cushion can include a rolled region and an accordion fold. The rolled region and the accordion fold can be positioned within the housing so as to provide a desired trajectory when the airbag cushion is inflated.

Claims

1. An airbag assembly comprising:

a housing defining a cavity and a deployment opening, wherein the housing comprises a wall that defines at least a portion of the cavity;

an inflator; and

an airbag cushion comprising a proximal portion and a distal end, wherein the proximal portion of the airbag cushion is coupled with the inflator such that an interior of the airbag cushion is in fluid communication with a portion of the inflator from which inflation gases are configured to be released,

wherein the airbag cushion is in a packaged configuration within the cavity of the housing and comprises a deployment accordion fold and a rolled region, wherein the deployment accordion fold is defined by at least a portion of the proximal portion of the airbag cushion, wherein the accordion fold is upstream from the rolled region such that inflation gases from the inflator must pass through the portion of the airbag cushion that defines the accordion fold before they can enter the rolled region, and wherein the distal end of the airbag cushion is at an interior of the rolled region,

wherein the rolled region of the airbag cushion is adjacent to the wall of the housing and is positioned between the wall of the housing and the deployment accordion fold prior to deployment of the airbag cushion, and

wherein the wall of the housing is configured to act as a reaction surface during deployment of the airbag cushion such that;

the deployment accordion fold presses the rolled region of the airbag cushion against the wall of the housing and maintains the rolled region in contact with the wall of the housing and generally at rest relative to the housing as the deployment accordion fold fills with inflation gases;

at least a portion of the accordion fold exits the housing through the deployment opening before the rolled region exits the housing; and

the rolled region is pulled, via the portion of the airbag cushion that defines the accordion fold, outwardly from the housing and out of said contact with the wall of the housing.

2. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein, when the housing is mounted in a vehicle such that the deployment opening faces downward, the wall of the housing imparts no downward momentum to the rolled region as the rolled region exits the housing.

3. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the housing further comprises an additional wall that is perpendicular to the wall that is configured to act as the reaction surface during deployment of the airbag cushion.

4. The airbag assembly of claim 3, wherein the wall that is configured to act as the reaction surface is adjacent to the deployment opening and wherein the additional wall and the deployment opening are at opposite sides of the housing.

5. The airbag assembly of claim 3, wherein the additional wall is adjacent to the deployment opening and wherein the deployment opening and the wall that is configured to act as the reaction surface are at opposite sides of the housing.

6. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the housing defines a generally parallelepiped configuration.

7. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein, when the housing is mounted in a vehicle such that the deployment opening faces downward, the general direction of the momentum of the rolled region once it has exited the housing is generally horizontal.

8. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the housing is configured to be installed in a vehicle such that the deployment opening is at a lower end thereof, wherein the deployment accordion fold is configured to expand downwardly through the deployment opening during initial inflation of the airbag cushion, and wherein the rolled region of the airbag cushion is configured to be pulled from the housing and unrolled in each of a rearward direction toward a vehicle occupant position and an upward direction during further inflation of the airbag cushion.

9. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the wall and the deployment opening are at opposite sides of the housing such that the accordion fold is closer to the deployment opening than is the rolled region when the airbag cushion is in the packaged configuration.

10. The airbag assembly of claim 9, wherein the housing is configured to be installed within a vehicle such that the wall is at an upper side of the housing and the deployment opening is at a lower end of the housing.

11. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the deployment accordion fold is positioned between the inflator and the rolled region of the airbag cushion.

12. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the airbag cushion comprises lateral regions that are configured to expand at opposite sides of the airbag cushion so as to extend in a cross-vehicle direction when the airbag cushion is deployed, wherein each lateral region is in an accordion folded arrangement that is rolled within the rolled region of the airbag cushion when the airbag cushion is in the packaged configuration, and wherein a transverse width of the rolled region is about the same as a transverse width of the housing.

13. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the housing is configured to be installed in a vehicle such that the wall of the housing is a rear wall that is positioned closest to a vehicle occupant position when the housing is installed in a vehicle, and wherein the deployment opening is at a lower end of the housing.

14. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the deployment accordion fold comprises a first and a second layer of the airbag cushion that are folded relative to each other so as to meet at an apex, and wherein the apex is further from the deployment opening than is any other portion of either of the first and second layers of the deployment accordion fold.

15. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the airbag cushion comprises lateral regions that are configured to expand at opposite sides of the airbag cushion so as to extend in a cross-vehicle direction when the airbag cushion is deployed, and wherein at least a portion of each lateral region is in an accordion folded arrangement that is rolled within the rolled region of the airbag cushion when the airbag cushion is in the packaged configuration.

16. The airbag assembly of claim 1, wherein the airbag cushion comprises lateral regions that are configured to expand at opposite sides of the airbag cushion so as to extend in a cross-vehicle direction when the airbag cushion is deployed, and wherein at least a portion of each lateral region is in tucked arrangement that is rolled within the rolled region of the airbag cushion when the airbag cushion is in the packaged configuration.

17. An airbag assembly comprising:

a housing defining a cavity and a deployment opening;

an inflator; and

an airbag cushion comprising a proximal portion and a distal portion, wherein the proximal portion of the airbag cushion is coupled with the inflator such that an interior of the airbag cushion is in fluid communication with a portion of the inflator from which inflation gases are configured to be released,

wherein the airbag cushion is in a packaged configuration within the cavity of the housing and comprises a deployment accordion fold and a rolled region, wherein the deployment accordion fold is defined by at least a portion of the proximal portion of the airbag cushion, wherein the rolled region comprises at least a portion of the distal portion of the airbag cushion, and wherein the deployment accordion fold is upstream from the rolled region such that inflation gases from the inflator must pass through the portion of the airbag cushion that defines the deployment accordion fold before they can enter the rolled region,

wherein the deployment accordion fold is configured to interact with the rolled region and the rolled region is configured to interact with the housing such that, upon inflation of the airbag cushion via the inflator, the deployment accordion fold expands and exits the housing without pushing the rolled region through the deployment opening, and

wherein the portion of the airbag cushion that defines the deployment accordion fold is configured to pull the rolled region outwardly from the housing after said portion has exited the housing.

18. The airbag assembly of claim 17, wherein pushing forces imparted to the rolled region by the deployment accordion fold during deployment of the airbag cushion are counteracted by the housing to maintain the rolled region generally at rest relative to the housing.

19. The airbag assembly of claim 17, wherein the housing comprises an upper wall and a rear wall that are perpendicular to each other, and wherein the deployment accordion fold is configured to compress the rolled region against one of the upper wall and the rear wall to cause the rolled region to remain generally at rest relative to the housing prior to a time that the portion of the airbag cushion that defines the deployment accordion fold pulls the rolled region outwardly from the housing.

20. The airbag assembly of claim 17, wherein at least a portion of the deployment accordion fold is positioned between the rolled region of the airbag cushion and the opening of the housing.

21. The airbag assembly of claim 17, wherein at least a portion of the deployment accordion fold is positioned between the inflator and the rolled region of the airbag cushion.

22. The airbag assembly of claim 17, wherein the airbag cushion comprises lateral regions that are configured to expand in opposite lateral directions so as to extend in a cross-vehicle direction when the airbag cushion is deployed, and wherein at least a portion of the lateral regions are in an accordion folded arrangement that is rolled within the rolled region of the airbag cushion when the airbag cushion is in the packaged configuration.

23. A method of packaging an airbag assembly, the method comprising:

coupling an inflator with a housing that defines a cavity and a deployment opening;

coupling a proximal portion of an airbag cushion with the inflator, wherein the airbag cushion comprises a distal portion that extends from the proximal portion;

rolling the distal portion of the airbag cushion so as to form a rolled region of the airbag cushion;

folding at least a portion of the proximal portion of the airbag cushion so as to form a deployment accordion fold, wherein the deployment accordion fold is upstream from the rolled region such that inflation gases from the inflator must pass through the portion of the airbag cushion that defines the accordion fold before entering the rolled region; and

positioning the airbag cushion within the cavity of the housing with the rolled region adjacent to a wall of the housing such that;

the deployment accordion fold is configured to interact with the rolled region and the rolled region is configured to interact with the wall of the housing, upon inflation of the airbag cushion via the inflator, to permit the accordion fold to expand and exit the housing without pushing the rolled region through the deployment opening; and

the portion of the airbag cushion that defines the deployment accordion fold is configured to pull the rolled region outwardly from the housing after said portion has exited the housing.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the method further comprises positioning the rolled region of the airbag cushion between the wall of the housing and the deployment accordion fold.