Airbags including internal tethers and methods of forming the same
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An airbag, comprising:
- a front panel of fabric;
a rear panel of fabric, the rear panel coupled to the front panel of fabric to define one or more inflatable chambers in fluid communication and for receiving inflation gas from an inflator; and
one or more internal tethers disposed in a tethered inflatable chamber of the one or more inflatable chambers, the one or more internal tethers each comprising at least one of a warp yarn or a weft yarn that extends between the fabric of the front panel and the fabric of the rear panel,wherein the one or more internal tethers are configured to transition from an unbroken configuration to a broken configuration when an internal pressure in the tethered inflatable chamber exceeds a threshold.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Airbags including tethered inflatable chambers are disclosed. The tethered inflatable chambers can include internal tethers that are configured to break when an internal pressure of a tethered inflatable chamber reaches a predetermined value. Methods of forming an airbag fabric including internal tethers are also disclosed.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. An airbag, comprising:
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a front panel of fabric; a rear panel of fabric, the rear panel coupled to the front panel of fabric to define one or more inflatable chambers in fluid communication and for receiving inflation gas from an inflator; and one or more internal tethers disposed in a tethered inflatable chamber of the one or more inflatable chambers, the one or more internal tethers each comprising at least one of a warp yarn or a weft yarn that extends between the fabric of the front panel and the fabric of the rear panel, wherein the one or more internal tethers are configured to transition from an unbroken configuration to a broken configuration when an internal pressure in the tethered inflatable chamber exceeds a threshold. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An inflatable curtain airbag assembly, comprising:
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an inflator; and an inflatable curtain airbag coupled to the inflator, the inflatable curtain airbag comprising; a front face and a rear face defining a void for receiving an inflation gas from the inflator, wherein each of the front face and the rear face is formed from an airbag fabric; a throat portion in fluid communication with the inflator; a plurality of inflatable chambers in fluid communication with the throat portion, wherein at least one of the inflatable chambers is a tethered inflatable chamber comprising a plurality of internal tethers disposed within the void, wherein each of the internal tethers comprises a yarn, the yarn extending between the airbag fabric of the front face and the airbag fabric of the rear face, wherein the internal tethers are configured to break into two discrete internal tether portions when an internal pressure of the tethered inflatable chamber reaches a predetermined value. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method of weaving an airbag, comprising:
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forming a first woven fabric layer via a first weaving pattern comprising weaving a first set of warp yarns under a first adjacent weft yarn, weaving a third set of warp yarns over the first adjacent weft yarn, alternately weaving the first set of warp yarns over a second adjacent weft yarn and alternately weaving the third set of warp yarns under the second adjacent weft yarn, and then repeatedly weaving and alternately weaving the first set of warp yarns and the third set of warp yarns, substantially laterally, with respect to additional weft yarns; forming a second woven fabric layer via a second weaving pattern comprising weaving a second set of warp yarns under a third adjacent weft yarn, weaving a fourth set of warp yarns over the third adjacent weft yarn, alternately weaving the second set of warp yarns over a fourth adjacent weft yarn and alternately weaving the fourth set of warp yarns under the fourth adjacent weft yarn, and then repeatedly weaving and alternately weaving the second set of warp yarns and the fourth set of warp yarns, substantially laterally, with respect to additional weft yarns; forming an internal tether between the first woven fabric layer and the second woven fabric layer via a third weaving pattern comprising releasing at least a portion of at least one weft yarn of the first woven fabric layer, and weaving at least a portion of the at least one weft yarn of the first woven fabric layer into the second woven fabric layer to form the internal tether, wherein the internal tether has a length, and wherein the internal tether is configured to break when an internal pressure within the tethered inflatable chamber in which the internal tether is disposed reaches a predetermined level; wherein a portion of the first woven fabric layer is opposite from and spaced apart from a portion of the second woven fabric layer; wherein the first woven fabric layer and the second woven fabric layer define an inflatable fabric portion that is surrounded by a non-inflatable fabric portion; wherein the first woven layer and the second woven layer define at least one tethered inflatable chamber within the inflatable fabric portion, the tethered inflatable chamber comprising the internal tether; and wherein the first woven fabric layer and the second woven fabric layer are woven to form a single continuous piece of fabric for use in inflatable airbags. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22)
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Specification