Air bag device, production method of an air bag device, activation method of an air bag device and vehicle with an air bag device

• US 20010052693A1
• Filed: 08/17/2001
• Published: 12/20/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Autoliv AB (Autoliv Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Autoliv AB (Autoliv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Mueller, Olaf
• Granted Patent: US 6,568,706 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 280/730.2
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0004 Frontal collision
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0006 Lateral collision
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0018 Roll-over
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23153 specially adapted for rear seat passengers
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23161 specially adapted for protecting at least two passengers, e.g. preventing them from hitting each other
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23192 Roof bags, i.e. protecting the occupant in a roll-over situation
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/2617 Curtain bag nozzles
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/201 Packaging straps or envelopes for inflatable members
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/213 in vehicle roof frames or pillars
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/214 in roof panels
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/232 Curtain-type airbags deploying mainly in a vertical direction from their top edge

Abstract

This invention relates to an air bag system for accommodation behind a vehicle covering. The air bag system contains an air bag, which advances in a main inflating direction when the air bag system is triggered, and a gas generator for supplying the air bag with pressure gas during triggering of the air bag system. The gas generator and the air bag are connected by a gas distributing duct which extends at least partially at an angle with respect to the main inflating direction of the air bag. In this case, the gas distributing duct is formed of air bag material. Furthermore, the invention relates to a manufacturing process and a triggering process for such an air bag system as well as to a motor vehicle having such an air bag system, of which at least the air bag is arranged on a sliding roof frame part.

Claims

1. Air bag system for an accommodation behind a vehicle covering, the air bag system comprising:

an air bag which advances in a main inflating direction when the air bag system is triggered, and

a gas generator for supplying the air bag with pressure gas during triggering of the air bag system,

the gas generator and the air bag being connected by a gas distributing duct which extends at least partially at an angle with respect to the main inflating direction of the air bag,

wherein the gas distributing duct is formed of air bag material.

2. Air bag system according to

claim 1

, wherein the gas distributing duct extends at least essentially transversely to the main inflating direction of the air bag.

3. Air bag system according to

claim 1

, wherein the gas distributing duct is integrally constructed with the air bag.

4. Air bag system according to

claim 1

, wherein the a gas distributing duct is formed by a multiple layer material having at least two layers.

5. Air bag system according to

claim 4

, the multiple layer air bag material of the gas distributing duct is formed by foldings of the air bag material.

6. Air bag system according to

claim 1

, wherein the gas distributing duct is formed by welded connections, glued connections, sewn connections or woven connections of at least two layers of air bag material, and gas passage openings are left between the welded connections, glued connections, sewn connections or woven connections.

7. Air bag system according to

claim 1

, and further comprising reinforcements placed in the gas distributing duct in an area of an inflow opening of the pressure gas from the gas generator and/or in areas in which the gas distributing duct has a curved course.

8. Air bag system according to

claim 1

, and further comprising covering and fastening devices by which the air bag can be accommodated when folded together in its ready position.

9. Air bag system according to

claim 8

, wherein the covering and fastening devices contain at least one layer of non-woven material or paper by which the air bag can be accommodated when folded together in its ready position.

10. Air bag system according to

claim 8

, wherein the covering and fastening devices are fixedly connected with at least one of the air bag and the vehicle covering

11. Air bag system according to

claim 10

, wherein the covering and fastening devices are glued to the at least one of the air bag and the vehicle covering.

12. Air bag system according to

claim 1

, and further comprising fastening elements which are used for simultaneous fastening of the vehicle covering and the air bag system or at least the air bag on other vehicle parts.

13. Air bag system according to

claim 1

, wherein the gas distributing duct is arranged on a side of the air bag which advances during triggering of the air bag system and emerges first from behind the vehicle covering.

14. Air bag system according to

claim 1

, wherein fastening passage holes are provided in at least one of the gas distributing duct and the air bag itself, which fastening passage holes are formed by welding connections, glued connections, sewn connections or woven connections and are sealed off with respect to the interior of the at least one of the gas distributing duct and the air bag, and/or wherein tension folds of the air bag are formed by welded connections, glued connections, sewn connections or woven connections.

20. Motor vehicle comprising at least one air bag system according to

claim 1

, wherein the air bag is folded-together as a package optionally by covering and fastening devices and is mounted on a vehicle covering of the motor vehicle, and/or wherein the air bag is folded together as a package optionally by covering and fastening devices as well as fastening elements and is fastened together with the vehicle covering of the motor vehicle on other parts of the motor vehicle.

21. Motor vehicle according to

claim 20

, wherein the vehicle covering is a prefabricated ceiling of the vehicle.

22. Motor vehicle having at least one air bag system according to

claim 1

, wherein the air bag is folded together as a package optionally by covering and fastening devices and is mounted on a vehicle part.

23. Motor vehicle according to

claim 22

, wherein the vehicle part is a frame part of a sliding roof.

24. Motor vehicle according to

claim 23

, wherein the frame part of the sliding roof is a side member, which extends in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle and on which a side air bag is mounted, and/or in that the frame part of the sliding roof is a cross member, which extends in a transverse direction of the vehicle and on which an air bag is mounted for a protection between occupants sitting in the front and the rear.

34. Motor vehicle according to

claim 23

, the frame part of the sliding roof is a cross member, which extends in a transverse direction of the vehicle and on which an air bag is mounted for a protection between occupants sitting in the front and the rear.

55. Motor vehicle having at least one air bag system according to

claim 1

, wherein the air bag is folded together as a package by covering and fastening devices and is mounted on a vehicle part.

56. Motor vehicle according to

claim 55

, wherein the vehicle part is a frame part of a sliding roof.

57. Motor vehicle according to

claim 56

, wherein the frame part of the sliding roof is a side member, which extends in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle and on which a side air bag is mounted.

15. Manufacturing process of an air bag system comprising the steps of:

forming a gas distributing duct in an air bag by a welding-together, gluing-together, sewing-together or weaving-together operation, said gas distributing extending at least partially at an angle with respect to a main inflating direction of the air bag, and leaving gas passage openings between the welded connections, glued connections, sewn connections or woven connections produced by the welding-together, gluing-together, sewing-together or wearing-together operation.

16. Manufacturing process of an air bag system according to

claim 15

, and further comprising the step of forming, simultaneously with the welded connections, glued connections, sewn connections and woven connections forming the gas distributing duct, fastening passage holes which are sealed off with respect to the interior of the gas distributing duct and/or the air bag, and/or tension by any of welding-together, gluing-together, sewing-together and weaving-together of the air bag material.

17. Manufacturing process of an air bag system according to

claim 15

, wherein, before the welding-together, gluing-together, sewing-together or weaving-together operation, the air bag material is folded for forming the gas distributing duct in order to have at least two layers in the area of the gas distributing duct.

33. Manufacturing process of an air bag system according to

claim 15

, and further comprising the step of forming tension folds by joining together portions of the air bag material.

18. Triggering process of an air bag system which contains an air bag housed behind a vehicle covering, comprising the steps of:

guiding gas from a gas generator into a gas distributing duct which is situated behind the vehicle covering and is made of an air bag material, and

having the inflating gas distributing duct already open the vehicle covering at least partially such that the air bag can emerge.

19. Triggering process of an air bag system according to

claim 18

, wherein the inflating gas distributing duct detaches the vehicle covering at least partially from vehicle parts covered by it so that the air bag can emerge between the vehicle covering and the vehicles parts covered by it.

25. Air bag system comprising:

a gas generator and an air bag, wherein the air bag can be mounted with or without a housing on a frame part of a sliding roof.

26. Air bag system according to

claim 25

, wherein the air bag is a side air bag and the frame part is a side member which extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and/or in that the air bag is one of an air bag for protection between occupants sitting in the front and the rear and an air bag for closing a sliding roof opening, and the frame part of the sliding roof is a cross member which extends in a transverse direction of the vehicle.

27. Air bag system according to

claim 26

, and further comprising air bag slide rails and guiding devices for guiding the air bag in the air bag slide rails on the air bag, wherein said air bag slide rails can be mounted at least essentially along the sliding roof.

28. Vehicle having an air bag system according to

claim 25

, wherein the air bag is accommodated in said housing.

35. Air bag system according to

claim 25

, wherein the air bag is one of an air bag for protection between occupants sitting in the front and the rear and an air bag for closing a sliding roof opening, with the frame part being a cross member of the sliding roof which extends in a transverse direction of the vehicle.

29. Air bag system for an accommodation behind a vehicle covering, the air bag system comprising:

an air bag which advances in a main inflating direction when the air bag system is triggered,

said air bag being composed of a flexible material formed into an enclosed integral bag with an axially extending distribution channel integrally formed as part of the bag,

said integrally formed distribution channel extending across a major portion of the bag in a direction at an angle to the main inflating direction of the bag,

the interior of the distribution channel being partially defined by and separated from the remaining interior of the bag by a series of spaced connections which define radial openings therebetween with respect to the axially extending distribution channel to enable communication between the interior of the distribution channel and the remaining interior of the bag, and

a gas generator for supplying the air bag with pressure gas during triggering of the air bag system coupled to the axially extending distribution channel so that gas flows axially through the distribution channel and passes radially into the remaining interior of the bag.

32. The combination of

claim 29

wherein tension folds of the air bag are formed by welded connections, glued connections, sewn connections or woven connections.

36. Air bag system according to

claim 29

, wherein the distribution channel extends at least essentially transversely to the main inflating direction of the air bag.

37. Air bag system according to

claim 29

, wherein the distribution channel is formed by a multiple layer material having at least two layers.

38. Air bag system according to

claim 37

, wherein the multiple layer air bag material of the distribution channel is formed by foldings of the air bag material.

39. Air bag system according to

claim 29

, wherein the distribution channel is formed by one of welded connections, glued connections, sewn connections and woven connections of at least two layers of air bag material, and gas passage openings are left between the connections.

40. Air bag system according to

claim 29

, and further comprising reinforcements placed in the distribution channel in an area of an inflow opening of the pressure gas from the gas generator or in areas in which the gas distributing duct has a curved course.

41. Air bag system according to

claim 29

, and further comprising covering and fastening devices by which the air bag can be accommodated when folded together in its ready position.

42. Air bag system according to

claim 41

, wherein the covering and fastening devices contain at least one layer of non-woven material or paper by which the air bag can be accommodated when folded together in its ready position.

43. Air bag system according to

claim 41

, wherein the covering and fastening devices are fixedly connected with at least one of the air bag and the vehicle covering.

44. Air bag system according to

claim 43

, wherein the covering and fastening devices are glued to the at least one of the air bag and the vehicle covering.

45. Air bag system according to

claim 29

, and further comprising fastening elements which are used for simultaneous fastening of the vehicle covering and the air bag system or at least the air bag on other vehicle parts.

46. Air bag system according to

claim 29

, wherein the distribution channel is arranged on a side of the air bag which advances during triggering of the air bag system and emerges first from behind the vehicle covering.

47. Air bag system according to

claim 29

, wherein fastening passage holes are provided in at least one of the gas distributing duct and the air bag itself, which fastening passage holes are formed by welding connections, glued connections, sewn connections or woven connections and are sealed off with respect to the interior of the air bag.

53. Motor vehicle comprising at least one air bag system according to

claim 29

, wherein the air bag is folded-together as a package [optionally by covering and fastening devices] and is mounted on a part of the motor vehicle.

54. Motor vehicle according to

claim 53

, wherein the vehicle part is a prefabricated ceiling of the vehicle.

30. The combination of an air bag and a gas generator, the air bag being an enclosed integral bag with a portion of the enclose integral bag formed into a loop that extends longitudinally across a major portion of the bag, the interior of the loop being separated from the interior of the remaining portion of the integral bag by a series of spaced connections, openings defined between successive connections to enable communication between the interior of the loop and the interior of the remaining portion of the integral bag, the remaining portion of the integral bag being in a folded condition, the gas generator being coupled to the loop such that when gas is generated by the gas generator, the gas flows axially through the loop to be distributed across the integral bag while passing radially out of the loop through the openings into the interior of the remaining portion of the integral bag causing the air bag to extend from its folded condition.

31. The combination of

claim 30

further comprising through openings formed in the integral bag adjacent one edge to enable the bag to be mounted in a vehicle, with the perimeter of the through openings being sealed to maintain the integrity of the air bag.

48. Manufacturing process of an air bag system comprising the steps of:

forming an integral air bag by at least one of a welding-together, gluing-together, sewing-together or weaving-together operation,

forming a distribution channel integrally as part of the air bag with the distribution channel extending axially across a major portion of the air bag, and extending at least partially at an angle with respect to a main inflating direction of the air bag, and

forming a plurality of spaced connections of the integral air bag to partially define the distribution channel and to define gas passage openings between the connections, which allow gas introduced into the distribution channel to flow axially through the distribution channel across a major portion of the air bag while passing radially through the gas passages into the interior of the remaining portion of the air bag.

49. Manufacturing process of an air bag system according to

claim 48

, and further comprising the step of forming fastening passage holes which are sealed off with respect to the interior of the air bag.

50. Manufacturing process of an air bag system according to

claim 48

, wherein, the air bag material is first folded for forming the distribution channel in order to have at least two layers.

51. Triggering process of an air bag system which contains an air bag housed behind a vehicle covering, comprising the steps of:

guiding gas from a gas generator into a distribution channel which is situated behind the vehicle covering and is made as an integral part of the air bag and extends axially across a major portion of the air bag in a direction at an angle to the main inflating direction of the air bag, and

locating the distribution channel of the air bag in a position with respect to the vehicle covering that the distribution channel, during inflation of the air bag, opens the vehicle covering at least partially such that the air bag can emerge.

52. Triggering process of an air bag system according to

claim 51

, wherein the inflating distribution channel detaches the vehicle covering at least partially from vehicle parts covered by it so that the air bag can emerge between the vehicle covering and the vehicles parts covered by it.

58. Air bag system comprising:

a gas generator, and an air bag, wherein the air bag can be mounted directly on a frame part of a sliding roof.

59. Air bag system according to

claim 58

, wherein the air bag is a side air bag and the frame part is a side member that extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle.

60. Air bag system according to

claim 59

, and further comprising air bag slide rails and guiding devices for guiding the air bag in the air bag slide rails, wherein said air bag slide rails are mounted at least essentially along the sliding roof.

61. Vehicle having an air bag system according to

claim 58

, wherein the air bag is accommodated in a housing.