JP2024128737A - Airbags - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To provide an airbag that can effectively disperse stress around a hole with a simple structure. [Solution] The airbag 1 comprises a bag-shaped airbag main body 2 having a hole 4, and a reinforcing body 5 fixed to the periphery of the hole 4. The reinforcing body 5 has a first reinforcing body 11 and a second reinforcing body 12 that has an outer shape larger than that of the first reinforcing body 11 and covers the first reinforcing body 11. At least a portion of the outer shape of either the first reinforcing body 11 or the second reinforcing body 12 is formed in a curved shape. [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to an airbag that has a reinforcing body that is fixed around the opening of the airbag body.

Airbag devices installed in vehicles such as automobiles inflate and deploy a folded, bag-shaped airbag by ejecting gas from an inflator, a gas generator, into the inside of the airbag to restrain and protect the occupant.

Conventionally, in order to protect the inside of the airbag from the gas emitted from the inflator, particularly holes formed in the airbag body such as the inflator insertion opening and the vent hole for gas exhaust, a reinforcing body (patch) is attached around the opening edge of the hole.

To improve strength, such reinforcing members are attached to the airbag body by multiple stitches concentric with the holes, and to prevent them from rolling up due to gas pressure, stitching is applied from the center of the reinforcing member to the outside of the outer edge in the direction of the gas ejection (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP-A-10-71924 (pages 3-4, Figures 1-5)

However, the reinforcing body that receives the gas pressure is usually a single piece, and the gas pressure is concentrated at the stitching applied to that single piece. This makes it difficult to determine the stitching locations or select the type of thread to ensure appropriate strength.

The present invention has been developed in consideration of these points, and aims to provide an airbag with a simple structure that can effectively distribute stress around the hole.

The airbag of claim 1 comprises a bag-shaped airbag body having a hole and a reinforcing body fixed around the hole, the reinforcing body having a first reinforcing body and a second reinforcing body having an outer shape larger than that of the first reinforcing body and covering the first reinforcing body, and at least a part of the outer shape of either the first reinforcing body or the second reinforcing body is formed in a curved shape.

The airbag described in claim 2 is the airbag described in claim 1, in which the second reinforcing body is attached to the airbag body at a portion that can be separated when the airbag body is deployed.

The airbag described in claim 3 is the airbag described in claim 1 or 2, in which the hole is a vent hole.

According to the airbag described in claim 1, when the airbag body expands and deploys due to gas ejected from the inflator into the airbag body, the gas pressure is diverted by the curved portion of the reinforcing body, and the gas pressure is unlikely to concentrate on either the first reinforcing body or the second reinforcing body, and stress can be effectively dispersed with a simple configuration.

The airbag described in claim 2 has the same effect as the airbag described in claim 1, but is also able to absorb gas pressure by being separated from the airbag body, dispersing stress more effectively.

According to the airbag of claim 3, in addition to the effect of the airbag of claim 1 or 2, the stress around the vent hole, which receives the pressure of the gas ejected from the inflator, can be effectively dispersed.

1 is a plan view showing a portion of an airbag according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed from the inside of an airbag main body. FIG.

One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In Figures 1 and 2, 1 indicates an airbag. This airbag 1 is mounted on a vehicle such as an automobile and stored in a folded state, and is inflated and deployed in the vehicle cabin by gas supplied from an inflator to restrain and protect the occupant. In this embodiment, the airbag 1 is, for example, a side airbag (SAB) that is stored in a storage portion such as the side of a seat and inflates and deploys to the side of the occupant.

The airbag 1 has a bag-shaped airbag body 2. The airbag body 2 is made by sewing one or more base fabrics into a bag shape. The airbag body 2, an inflator, and a case that houses the airbag body 2 and the inflator constitute an airbag device. The airbag device is stored in the case with the airbag body 2 folded together with the inflator, and is installed in the storage area together with the case.

The airbag body 2 is formed with a facing portion 3 that faces the occupant and restrains the occupant. The facing portion 3 is also called an occupant restraint surface, and is formed in a surface shape that covers, for example, the side of the occupant.

A hole 4 is formed in the airbag body 2. The hole 4 may be any shape, but is formed, for example, in a rectangular shape, particularly in a long and narrow rectangular shape. In this embodiment, the hole 4 is described as an exhaust hole, or vent hole, for appropriately setting the internal pressure by discharging a portion of the gas ejected into the airbag body 2. In the illustrated example, the hole 4 is opened through the opposing portion 3 of the airbag body 2.

A reinforcing body 5 is fixed around the hole 4 to reinforce the airbag body 2 around the hole 4. The reinforcing body 5 is also called a patch. A plurality of reinforcing bodies 5 are provided. In this embodiment, the reinforcing body 5 includes a first reinforcing body 11 and a second reinforcing body 12.

The first reinforcing body 11 is formed from a base fabric or the like. The first reinforcing body 11 is formed to have an outer shape larger than the hole portion 4 and is layered on the inner surface of the airbag body portion 2.

The first reinforcing body 11 has a first opening 14 that communicates with the hole 4. The first opening 14 is formed in the same shape or substantially the same shape as the hole 4, and is aligned with the position of the hole 4 when the first reinforcing body 11 is placed on the inner surface of the airbag body 2.

The second reinforcing body 12 is formed from a base fabric or the like. It has a larger outer shape than the first reinforcing body 11, and covers the first reinforcing body 11, overlapping the first reinforcing body 11 and the inner surface of the airbag main body 2. The second reinforcing body 12 is formed to a size that completely covers the outer shape of the first reinforcing body 11. In other words, the entire first reinforcing body 11 is covered by the second reinforcing body 12.

The second reinforcing body 12 is formed with a second opening 15 that communicates with the hole 4. Like the first opening 14, the second opening 15 is formed in the same shape or substantially the same shape as the hole 4 and/or the first opening 14, and is aligned with the positions of the hole 4 and the first opening 14 when the second reinforcing body 12 is overlaid on the inner surface of the airbag body 2 and the first reinforcing body 11.

The first reinforcing body 11 is layered so as to be in close contact with the inner surface of the airbag body 2, and the second reinforcing body 12 is layered so as to be in close contact with the first reinforcing body 11 and the inner surfaces of the airbag body 2. However, in FIG. 2, for clarity of explanation, the first reinforcing body 11 is shown separated from the inner surface of the airbag body 2, and the second reinforcing body 12 is shown separated from the first reinforcing body 11 and the inner surfaces of the airbag body 2.

As shown in FIG. 1, at least a portion of the outer shape of either the first reinforcing body 11 or the second reinforcing body 12 is curved. In this embodiment, the outer shape of the first reinforcing body 11 is linear, and at least a portion of the outer shape of the second reinforcing body 12 is curved.

In the illustrated example, the first reinforcing body 11 has a rectangular outer shape. For example, the outer shape of the first reinforcing body 11 is rectangular, and each side that forms the outer edge is linear.

For example, the outer shape of the second reinforcing body 12 is formed in an elliptical shape. In other words, the outer shape of the second reinforcing body 12 is formed in a curved shape as a whole and does not have any straight line portions. The outer shape of the second reinforcing body 12 is curved in a gentle curve.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the reinforcing body 5 is fixed to the airbag body 2 by a fixing portion 16. In this embodiment, the fixing portion 16 is, for example, a sewn portion. The reinforcing body 5 has a first fixing portion 18 that fixes the first reinforcing body 11 to the airbag body 2, and a second fixing portion 19 that fixes the second reinforcing body 12 to the airbag body 2.

The first fixing portion 18 is formed in a position surrounding the first opening 14.

The second fixing portion 19 surrounds the second opening 15 and is formed outside the first fixing portion 18, i.e., on the opposite side of the first opening 14 and the hole portion 4 from the first fixing portion 18.

The first fixing portion 18 is formed in a loop shape near the outer edge of the first reinforcing body 11 along the outer shape of the first reinforcing body 11. Similarly, the second fixing portion 19 is formed in a loop shape near the outer edge of the second reinforcing body 12 along the outer shape of the second reinforcing body 12. Therefore, in this embodiment, at least a portion of the second fixing portion 19 is formed in a curved shape.

In the illustrated example, the first fixing portion 18 is formed in a rectangular shape that surrounds the outer shape of the first opening 14. The first fixing portion 18 is located near the outer edge of the first reinforcing body 11 and away from the outer edge toward the inside of the first reinforcing body 11. Therefore, the portion of the first reinforcing body 11 that is closer to the outer edge than the first fixing portion 18 forms the joint allowance 11a.

The second fixing portion 19 is formed in an elliptical shape that surrounds the outer shape of the second opening 15. That is, the second fixing portion 19 is formed in a curved shape as a whole and does not have a straight portion. In the illustrated example, the second fixing portion 19 is formed in an elliptical shape that surrounds the outer shape of the first reinforcing body 11. Therefore, the second fixing portion 19 is curved in a gentle curve. The second fixing portion 19 is located near the outer edge of the second reinforcing body 12 and away from the outer edge to the inside of the second reinforcing body 12. Therefore, the portion of the second reinforcing body 12 that is closer to the outer edge than the second fixing portion 19 becomes the joint margin 12a. In this embodiment, the width dimension of the joint margin 12a is smaller than the width dimension of the joint margin 11a.

The second fixed portion 19 has a smaller fixing strength than the first fixed portion 18. For example, the sewing thread 19a constituting the second fixed portion 19 is set to be thinner than the sewing thread 18a constituting the first fixed portion 18. The sewing pitch of the second fixed portion 19 is also larger than the sewing pitch of the first fixed portion 18. Therefore, the second fixed portion 19 can be separated from the airbag body 2 by the gas pressure when the airbag body 2 is deployed.

The reinforcing body 5 that reinforces the periphery of the hole 4 is a first reinforcing body 11 and a second reinforcing body 12 that is larger in outer shape than the first reinforcing body 11 and covers the first reinforcing body 11. At least a part of the outer shape of either the first reinforcing body 11 or the second reinforcing body 12 is curved. This allows the curved portion to absorb the gas pressure that occurs when the airbag body 2 is inflated and deployed by gas ejected from the inflator inside the folded airbag body 2. In addition, the periphery of the hole 4 is reinforced by two reinforcing bodies, the first reinforcing body 11 and the second reinforcing body 12, so that the gas pressure is less likely to concentrate on either the first reinforcing body 11 or the second reinforcing body 12, and stress can be effectively dispersed with a simple configuration.

In this embodiment, the second reinforcement 12, which has a curved outer shape, covers the first reinforcement 11, preventing gas from concentrating and accumulating between the seam allowance 11a of the first reinforcement 11 and the first fixed portion 18.

As a result, it is possible to prevent the seams of the first fixing portion 18 from becoming connected, and to prevent the airbag body portion 2 from tearing together with the first reinforcing body 11 from the first fixing portion 18.

In addition, since the second fixing portion 19 can be separated from the airbag body 2 by the gas pressure when the airbag body 2 is deployed, this separation from the airbag body 2 absorbs the gas pressure and allows stress to be dispersed more effectively.

In particular, when the hole 4 is formed in the facing portion 3, attaching multiple reinforcing bodies 5 to the facing portion 3 places a load on the facing portion 3 and the attachment portion 16 when the airbag body 2 is deployed. Therefore, by making at least a portion of the second attachment portion 19 curved and setting its attachment strength smaller than that of the first attachment portion 18, the stress applied to the facing portion 3 can be reduced.

In particular, because hole 4 is a vent hole, the stress around the vent hole, which receives pressure from the gas ejected from the inflator, can be effectively dispersed.

In one embodiment, the fastening portion 16 is not limited to being sewn, but may be formed with adhesive or the like.

Although the hole 4 has been described as a vent hole, the hole is not limited to this, and the same configuration can be applied to any hole that is opened in the airbag body 2 and reinforced by a reinforcing body, such as an inflator insertion opening.

Furthermore, the airbag 1 is not limited to side airbags, but can be applied to any other type of airbag, such as a curtain airbag that inflates and deploys inside the vehicle cabin to cover the vehicle window.

The present invention is suitable for use as an airbag for vehicles such as automobiles.

Reference Signs List 1 Airbag 2 Airbag body 4 Hole 5 Reinforcement 11 First reinforcing body 12 Second reinforcing body

Claims (3)

A bag-shaped airbag body having a hole;
a reinforcing body fixed to the periphery of the hole,
The reinforcing body is
A first reinforcement body;
a second reinforcing body that is larger in outer shape than the first reinforcing body and covers the first reinforcing body,
An airbag, characterized in that at least a part of the outer shape of either the first reinforcing body or the second reinforcing body is formed in a curved shape. 2. The airbag according to claim 1, wherein the second reinforcing member is attached to the airbag body at a portion that can be separated when the airbag body is deployed. 3. The airbag according to claim 1, wherein the hole is a vent hole.

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