JP2004291785A - Side airbag device for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a side airbag device for a vehicle which can effectively protect the hip part and the breast part of a passenger respectively at the time of a side collision of the vehicle. <P>SOLUTION: In a front seat 11, this side airbag device 21 is buried. In an initial stage wherein an airbag 24 constituting the side airbag device 21 is expand-developed, a cover 15 constituting a seat part 11a is lifted upward, and the hip part Ph (the buttocks) of the passenger P is lifted upward. In the seat part 11a, the air bag 24 is expand-developed by opening a fracture planned line 15a of the cover 15 of the front seat 11 under a state wherein the passenger P is tilted to the inside in the vehicle width direction, and therefore, a hip part compartment 26 and a breast part compartment 27 are surely and properly expand-developed in spaces between a side door 12 and the hip part Ph and the breast part Pc. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a seat in a vehicle compartment when an impact of a predetermined value or more is applied to a body of a vehicle or the impact is predicted due to a collision of another vehicle with a body side portion of the vehicle (hereinafter, simply referred to as a side collision). The present invention relates to a side airbag device for a vehicle for protecting an occupant sitting in a vehicle from an impact.
[0002]
[Prior art]
As a conventional side airbag device of this type, for example, one having a configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known. In this airbag device, a side airbag device is embedded at an edge of a seat provided in a vehicle interior at a side door side of a seating portion. The airbag is inflated and deployed between the occupant seated on the seat and the body side portion of the vehicle by the gas generated from the inflator at the time of a side collision of the vehicle to absorb the impact.
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
Patent No. 2933894 [0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the conventional side airbag device has the following problems. In other words, when the occupant's waist is displaced toward the side door, the gap between the inner surface of the side door and the occupant's waist is small, so the airbag is difficult to inflate and deploy normally. There has been a problem that the lower back cannot be properly protected.
[0005]
Also, when the occupant's shoulder is in contact with the inside surface of the sight door, the gap between the inside surface of the side door and the occupant's chest is small, so there is an air gap between the side door and the waist. Even if the bag is normally inflated and deployed, there is a problem that the impact of the airbag on the chest is increased and the chest cannot be properly protected.
[0006]
Furthermore, in the conventional side airbag device, since the airbag is inflated and deployed in the gap between the occupant's waist and chest at the same time and under the same pressure, the chest may be subjected to an excessive impact by the airbag. I'm worried about the protective performance of the camera.
[0007]
While the occupant's waist was relatively resistant to injury, the chest was less resistant, so a softer feeling was required for chest protection.
The present invention has been made on the basis of the above-mentioned demand for a soft feeling and points of interest existing in the related art. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle side airbag device capable of effectively protecting the occupant's waist and chest during a side collision of the vehicle.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, the invention according to claim 1 is directed to a seat disposed in a vehicle interior when an impact of a predetermined value or more acts on a body side portion of the vehicle or when a collision is predicted. A side airbag device for a vehicle including an airbag that inflates and deploys an airbag incorporated in a seat between a body side portion and an occupant seated on a seat, and a gas source that inflates and deploys the airbag. In the early stage of the inflation and deployment of the airbag inside the stool, the butt of the occupant on the side of the body side is pushed up, and then the airbag is inflated between the body side and the occupant's waist and chest. The gist is that it is configured to be deployed.
[0009]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the side airbag device for a vehicle according to the first aspect, the airbag includes a waist compartment corresponding to a waist of an occupant sitting on a seat in an inflated and deployed state; A chest compartment corresponding to the chest, and expansion delay means for inflating the chest compartment after inflation of the waist compartment by gas supplied from the gas generating source is provided in both compartments; The gist is that an internal pressure adjusting means for adjusting the internal pressure of the chest compartment to be lower than the internal pressure of the compartment is provided.
[0010]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the side airbag device for a vehicle according to the second aspect, the airbag is interposed between a pair of base fabrics facing each other, and both base fabrics, and A partition cloth for partitioning and forming a chest partition chamber, wherein a gas outlet of the gas generating source is opened in the waist partition chamber; and the inflation delay means is provided on the partition cloth and the partition cloth, and The gist of the present invention is that it is constituted by a throttle passage that restricts the flow of gas from the compartment to the chest compartment.
[0011]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle side airbag device according to the second aspect, the airbag defines a pair of base fabrics facing each other and a waist compartment and a chest compartment. A seam that joins a base cloth, an outlet of the gas generating source is opened to the waist compartment, and the expansion delay means is formed by a gap between the two base fabrics that do not form the seam; The gist of the present invention is that it is a throttle passage that restricts the inflow of gas from the to the chest compartment.
[0012]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the side airbag device for a vehicle according to any one of the second to fourth aspects, the internal pressure adjusting unit is configured to control the outside of the gas of the base cloth forming the waist compartment. The gist of the present invention is that the amount of leakage is set to be smaller than the amount of leakage of the gas of the base fabric forming the chest compartment to the outside.
[0013]
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the side airbag device according to the fifth aspect, the base fabric forming the waist compartment is an impermeable cloth, and the base fabric forming the chest compartment is a transparent cloth. Is the gist.
[0014]
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the side airbag device for a vehicle according to the fifth aspect, the waist compartment and the chest compartment are both formed of a base cloth of a transparent cloth, and the base forming the waist compartment is formed. The gist is that an impermeable layer is formed on the front surface or the back surface of the cloth.
[0015]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show a left front seat 11 arranged in a vehicle interior. The front seat 11 includes a seat 11a and a backrest 11b. The stool 11a includes a metal frame 13 only partially illustrated, a cushion material 14 made of a synthetic foam resin or a synthetic rubber foam, and a cover 15 covering the frame 13 and the cushion material 14 so as to cover the frame 13 and the cushion material 14. It consists of. A side airbag device 21 is buried and arranged in the case 22 in the left side of the seat 11 a of the front seat 11 on the side of the side door 12. In FIG. 2, only the left front seat 11 is shown, but a similar side airbag device is also buried and arranged inside the right side of the seating portion of the right front seat.
[0016]
Next, the configuration of the side airbag device 21 will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a case 22 of the side airbag device 21 is formed in a channel shape and fixed to the frame 13 so as to be directed in a traveling direction of a vehicle. The side airbag device 21 includes an inflator 23 serving as a gas generating source fixed to an inner bottom portion of a case 22 so as to be directed in the traveling direction of the vehicle, and a woven fabric attached to the case 22 so as to cover the inflator 23. And a bag-like airbag 24 made of cloth or the like. A gas generating agent (not shown) is provided inside the inflator 23, and gas outlets 23a are formed at several locations (only one location is shown in this embodiment) on the peripheral surface of the inflator 23. The airbag 24 is normally stored in a folded state in the case 22 as shown in FIG.
[0017]
A detection sensor (not shown) for detecting an impact on a body side portion (side door 12) of the vehicle is electrically connected to an ignition portion (not shown) of the inflator 23 via a control device (not shown). Have been. When an impact equal to or more than a predetermined value is applied to the body side portion by a side collision with the body side portion of the vehicle, an ignition portion (not shown) of the inflator 23 is transmitted from a detection sensor (not shown) via a control device (not shown). ), The drive current is output. The driving current ignites the gas generating agent of the inflator 23 to generate gas. Then, this gas is ejected and supplied from the gas ejection port 23a into the airbag 24, and the airbag 24 is inflated and deployed from the folded state.
[0018]
In the initial stage of the inflating and deploying operation of the airbag 24, the seating surface of the seating portion 11 a, that is, a part of the cover 15 is pushed up from below by the airbag 24 and inclined so as to become higher toward the side door 12 side. You. As a result, as shown in FIG. 3, the posture of the occupant P seated on the front seat 11 is changed so as to be inclined toward the center of the cabin, and the occupant P expands between the occupant P and the side door 12 constituting the body side portion. A predetermined space S is formed.
[0019]
A predetermined break line 15a is formed at a predetermined position of the cover 15 constituting the stool 11a so that the airbag 24 breaks through the cover 15 and is inflated and deployed upward.
[0020]
Next, the airbag 24 will be described.
The airbag 24 is formed by sewing a pair of base cloths 24a and 24b made of a woven cloth or the like in a bag shape as shown in FIG. 22. The base edges of the base cloths 24a and 24b are joined to the bottom and side surfaces of the case 22, respectively. Then, when the inflator 23 is operated, as shown in FIG. 4, the airbag 24 is inflated and deployed in the space S between the occupant P in the posture-changed state and the side door 12, and the waist Ph of the occupant P and The chest Pc is protected with a time lag as described later.
[0021]
A tether as a partition cloth for partitioning the inside of the airbag 24 into two upper and lower chambers by connecting the two base cloths 24a and 24b to each other at a predetermined interval substantially at the center of the airbag 24 in the vertical direction. Reference numeral 25 is sewn to the inner surfaces of the base cloths 24a and 24b by sewing threads. The tether 25 defines a waist compartment 26 and a chest compartment 27 inside the airbag 24. The gas blown out from the gas outlet 23a of the inflator 23 is directly supplied to the waist compartment 26, and the gas is not directly supplied to the chest compartment 27.
[0022]
A large number of small holes 25a are formed in the tether 25 as a throttle passage so that the gas supplied into the waist compartment 26 is supplied to the chest compartment 27 with a delay by these small holes 25a. It has become. In this embodiment, the tether 25 and the small hole 25a constitute a deployment delay means for delaying the inflation and deployment of the chest compartment 27 more than the inflation and deployment of the waist compartment 26. A vent hole (not shown) for discharging gas inside after expansion is formed in a part of the chest compartment 27.
[0023]
A silicon coating layer 28 as an impermeable layer is formed on the back surface of the base cloths 24a and 24b made of a permeable cloth constituting the waist compartment 26 of the airbag 24, and the gas inside the waist compartment 26 is externally exposed. I try not to leak. On the other hand, the coating layer 28 is not formed on the inner and outer surfaces of the base fabrics 24a and 24b constituting the chest compartment 27, and the gas inside the chest compartment 27 is innumerably narrow in the base fabrics 24a and 24b. Through to moderately leak outside. Thereby, the internal pressure of the chest compartment 27 is adjusted to be lower than the internal pressure of the lumbar compartment 26. Therefore, the coating layer 28 constitutes an internal pressure adjusting means.
[0024]
Various conditions such as the gas pressure from the inflator 23 and the size of the vent hole are set so that the internal pressures of the waist compartment 26 and the chest compartment 27 fall within the following ranges. That is, the conditions are set so that the internal pressure of the waist compartment 26 is 150 to 200 kPa (kPa) and the internal pressure of the chest compartment 27 is 50 to 100 kPa (kPa). In this case, it is desirable that the internal pressure of the chest compartment 27 be equal to or less than half the internal pressure of the waist compartment 26. The values of the internal pressures of the lumbar compartment 26 and the thoracic compartment 27 are values set under so-called static deployment conditions under the condition that no external load such as a collision is applied to the airbag 24. is there.
[0025]
Next, the operation of the side airbag device 21 configured as described above will be described.
By the way, in a normal state of the front seat 11 shown in FIG. 2, when an impact of a predetermined value or more is applied to the body side portion due to a side collision by another vehicle with respect to the body side portion of the vehicle, a sensor (not shown) detects the impact, Gas is generated from the inflator 23 based on the detection. Then, as shown in FIG. 3, the gas is jetted from the gas jet port 23 a of the inflator 23 to the waist compartment 26 of the airbag 24. Thereby, the buttocks position of the seating surface of the seating portion 11a is inclined so as to increase toward the body side portion. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3, the occupant P seated on the front seat 11 is changed in posture so as to incline toward the center of the room, and the predetermined space S expanded between the occupant P and the side door 12 becomes larger. It is formed.
[0026]
Next, when the lumbar compartment 26 further expands, the inflating airbag 24 breaks the cover 15 along the expected break line 15a, and the lumbar compartment 26 moves upwardly outside the cover 15 as shown in FIG. It is expanded and deployed as shown in FIG. As a result, the waist compartment 26 appropriately expands and enters between the side door 12 and the waist Ph of the occupant P, and the waist Ph of the occupant P is protected by the waist compartment 26.
[0027]
Thereafter, the gas in the waist compartment 26 is supplied into the chest compartment 27 through a small hole 25a provided in the tether 25, and the chest compartment 27 corresponding to the chest Pc is moved to the side door 12 as shown in FIG. The chest Pc is inflated and deployed to protect the chest Pc. In FIG. 5, the occupant P has returned to the original sitting position, but there is no problem in inflating and deploying the airbag 24.
[0028]
Therefore, according to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) In the vehicle side airbag device, the side airbag device 21 is embedded in the seat 11a, and is activated when a predetermined impact or more is applied to the body of the vehicle due to a side collision. By moving the seat surface of the cover 15 corresponding to the buttocks of P upward, the posture of the occupant P is inclined. Then, an enlarged space S is formed between the occupant P seated on the front seat 11 and the body side portion. Thereafter, the airbag 24 was broken along the break line 15a of the cover 15 so as to be inflated and deployed in the enlarged space S between the body side portion and the occupant P. Therefore, in the initial stage of the inflation and deployment of the airbag 24, the posture can be changed so as to incline toward the center of the vehicle compartment without imposing a great physical burden on the occupant P. Therefore, the expanded predetermined space S can be effectively formed between the occupant P and the body side portion before the airbag 24 is completely inflated and deployed. As a result, the inflating and deploying operation of the airbag 24 is reliably and appropriately performed, and the impact acting on the lumbar region Ph and the chest region Pc of the occupant P can be effectively absorbed, and the occupant P can be effectively and reliably protected. Can be.
[0029]
(2) In the above embodiment, the airbag 24 is formed by the tether 25 into the lumbar compartment 26 and the chest compartment 27. Further, when an impact of a predetermined value or more is applied to the body due to a side collision, the gas ejected from the inflator 23 is first supplied to the waist compartment 26 to be inflated and deployed, and then the chest compartment 27 is inflated and deployed. I made it. For this reason, the lumbar region Ph of the occupant P who is resistant to an impact can be quickly and reliably protected first.
[0030]
(3) In the embodiment, the pressure inside the chest compartment 27 is set to be lower than the pressure inside the waist compartment 26. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately protect the chest Pc of the occupant P who requires a soft feeling.
[0031]
(4) In the above embodiment, as a means for adjusting the internal pressure of the waist compartment 26 and the chest compartment 27, the silicon coating layer 28 is formed on the back surfaces of the base fabrics 24a and 24b constituting the waist compartment 26. For this reason, the internal pressure adjusting means can be easily formed, and the manufacturing can be facilitated and the cost can be reduced.
[0032]
(5) In the above embodiment, the waist compartment 26 and the chest compartment 27 are defined by the tether 25 having the small holes 25a, and the gas ejected from the inflator 23 is first supplied to the waist compartment 26. . For this reason, the structure of the expansion delay means can be simplified, the manufacturing can be facilitated, and the cost can be reduced.
[0033]
(Example of change)
This embodiment can be embodied with the following changes.
Although not shown, the waist compartment 26 and the chest compartment 27 of the airbag 24 are sectioned by sewing the base cloths 24a and 24b with sewing threads as seams. The waist compartment 26 and the chest compartment 27 are communicated with each other by a squeezing passage formed in the gap between the base cloths 24a and 24b where the sewing thread is omitted, and the sewing thread and the squeezing passage constitute expansion delay means. It may be.
[0034]
In this alternative example, as compared with the method using the tether 25, the number of components can be reduced to facilitate manufacture and reduce costs, but other operations and effects are the same as those in the above-described embodiment. .
[0035]
Only the waist compartment 26 may be made of an impermeable cloth, and the chest compartment 27 may be made of a transparent cloth separately, and the base fabrics may be later sewn together to be connected.
[0036]
When the airbag 24 is inflated and deployed, the thickness of the chest compartment 27 may be smaller than the thickness of the waist compartment 26.
In the above-described embodiment, the base fabrics 24a and 24b of the airbag 24 may be formed of, for example, a single woven fabric without sewing the pair of base fabrics 24a and 24b.
[0037]
In the above embodiments, the airbag 24 may be formed using other materials such as a nonwoven fabric and a synthetic resin sheet in addition to the woven fabric.
The base fabrics 24a and 24b of the airbag 24 corresponding to the waist compartment 26 may be formed of a material having a smaller gas leakage property than the portion corresponding to the chest compartment 27.
[0038]
A coating layer 28 may be formed on the surfaces of the base fabrics 24a and 24b constituting the waist compartment 26.
A shoulder compartment for protecting the shoulder of the occupant P may be formed with respect to the airbag 24, or a head compartment for protecting the head may be formed.
[0039]
A configuration may be adopted in which the prediction sensor detects the approach distance and collision tightness of another vehicle with respect to the body side portion of the vehicle, and outputs an activation signal to the side airbag device 21.
[0040]
The prediction sensor emits an ultrasonic wave or a radio wave and receives a reflected wave of the ultrasonic wave or the radio wave. The control device predicts the side collision timing of another vehicle based on the degree of change of the reception signal from the prediction sensor, and activates the side airbag device 21 at an appropriate timing.
[0041]
The detection sensor may be omitted, and only the prediction sensor may be provided.
The present invention may be embodied in other seats such as a rear seat other than the front seat.
[0042]
【The invention's effect】
As described in detail above, the invention according to claim 1 exhibits an excellent effect that the lumbar portion and the chest portion of the occupant can be effectively protected at the time of a side collision.
[0043]
According to the second aspect of the invention, the effect of the first aspect of the invention can be further improved.
According to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the second aspect of the present invention, the configuration of the expansion delay means can be simplified, the manufacturing can be easily performed, and the cost can be reduced.
[0044]
According to the invention described in claim 4, in addition to the effect of the invention described in claim 2, the configuration of the expansion delay means can be further simplified, the production can be further facilitated, and the cost can be reduced.
[0045]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the second aspect of the present invention, the configuration of the internal pressure adjusting means is simplified to facilitate manufacture and reduce costs. Can be.
[0046]
According to the invention of claim 6, in addition to the effect of the invention of claim 5, the internal pressure adjusting means can be easily formed only by changing the type of the base cloth.
According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the fifth aspect of the present invention, the internal pressure adjusting means can be easily formed only by forming an impermeable layer on the surface or the inner surface of the base fabric forming the waist compartment. Can be formed.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a side view showing a side airbag device of a vehicle according to an embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view for explaining the operation of the airbag.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the airbag.
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the airbag.
[Description of Signs] P: occupant, Pc: chest, Ph: waist, 11a: stool, 21: side airbag device, 24: airbag, 24a, 24b: base cloth, 25a: small hole as a throttle passage, 26 ... waist compartment, 27 ... chest compartment.

Claims (7)

An occupant who sits on the body side portion and the seat with an airbag built in the seat stool portion of the seat arranged in the vehicle interior when an impact of a predetermined value or more acts on the body side portion of the vehicle or when a collision is predicted. And a gas generating source for inflating and deploying the airbag between the airbag and the side airbag device of the vehicle.
At the beginning of the inflation and deployment of the airbag inside the stool, the butt of the occupant on the side of the body side is pushed up, and then the airbag is inflated and deployed between the body side and the occupant's waist and chest. Side airbag device for a vehicle configured as described above. The airbag is provided with a waist compartment corresponding to the waist of the occupant sitting on the seat in the inflated and deployed state, and a chest compartment corresponding to the occupant's chest. Expansion delay means for inflating the thoracic compartment after inflation of the lumbar compartment by the supplied gas is provided, and internal pressure adjusting means for adjusting the internal pressure of the thoracic compartment to be lower than the internal pressure of the lumbar compartment is provided. The side airbag device for a vehicle according to claim 1. The airbag includes a pair of base cloths facing each other, and a partition cloth interposed between the two base cloths, the partition cloth forming the waist compartment and the chest compartment. An opening in the compartment, wherein the inflation delay means is constituted by the compartment cloth and a throttle passage provided in the compartment cloth and configured to restrict gas from flowing from the waist compartment to the chest compartment. Item 3. A side airbag device for a vehicle according to Item 2. The airbag is composed of a pair of base cloths facing each other, and a seam that joins both base cloths so as to form a waist compartment and a chest compartment, and a spout of the gas generation source is provided in the waist compartment. 3. The vehicle according to claim 2, which is opened, and wherein the expansion delay means is a throttle passage formed by a gap between the two base fabrics that do not form the seam and that restricts the flow of gas from the waist compartment to the chest compartment. Side airbag device. The said internal pressure adjustment means is comprised by making the outside leak amount of the gas of the base fabric which forms the said waist compartment smaller than the leak amount of the gas of the base fabric which forms a chest compartment outside. Item 5. The side airbag device for a vehicle according to any one of Items 2 to 4. The side airbag device according to claim 5, wherein the base fabric forming the waist compartment is an impermeable fabric, and the base fabric forming the chest compartment is a transparent fabric. 6. The vehicle side airbag according to claim 5, wherein both the waist compartment and the chest compartment are formed of a base cloth of a permeable cloth, and an impermeable layer is formed on a front surface or a back surface of the base fabric forming the waist compartment. apparatus.

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