JP5165966B2 - Airbag device for vehicle - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention prevents the body panel from being damaged by distributing the pressure acting on the joint between the inner panel and the body panel when the airbag is deployed and inflated by the inflation gas ejected from the inflator. The present invention relates to a vehicle airbag device.

  Conventionally, Patent Document 1 is known as an example of an airbag that deploys and inflates an airbag main body toward an occupant side with a high-pressure gas ejected from an inflator when an automobile collides to protect the occupant from an impact at the time of collision. .

The airbag of Patent Document 1 forms two base fabric panels each consisting of a substantially triangular main portion and a substantially tail-shaped end surface extending from the bottom of the main portion, and the base fabric panels are stacked. In this state, the periphery is sewn together to form the airbag body, so that when the airbag body is inflated and deployed, a recess is formed on the occupant restraint surface. In the airbag main body of this airbag, the arcuate portion of the main portion and both inclined side portions of the two base fabric panels are sewn with sewing threads in a state of being overlapped with each other. A reinforcing cloth is provided between the two base fabric panels, and the arc-shaped portion and both oblique sides of the reinforcing fabric are also sewn between the base fabric panels by the sewing thread. On the other hand, the bottom side of the reinforcing fabric is not sewn to the base fabric panel.
JP 2006-232178 A

  In the above-described conventional airbag, when high-pressure gas is ejected from the inflator, the airbag body is filled with the high-pressure gas and inflated and deployed. In this type of airbag body structure in which the reinforcing cloth is partially sewn inside the base fabric panel, for example, as shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, it corresponds to the bottom portion. The non-sewn portion of the reinforcing cloth a becomes the opening edge b. For this reason, when the high-pressure gas G is ejected and the high-pressure gas G flows between the base cloth panel c and the reinforcing cloth a through the opening edge b, the reinforcing cloth a swells with respect to the base cloth panel c. The phenomenon that occurs. When such a phenomenon occurs, a tension T is generated at the opening edge b so as to spread it in an arch shape. Due to the tension T, a strong tensile force is applied to the joint portion e between the opening edge portion b and the sewing thread d sewn on the reinforcing fabric a and the base fabric panel c, and the base fabric panel c may be damaged. .

  The present invention was devised in view of the above-described conventional problems, and when an airbag is deployed and inflated by an inflating gas ejected from an inflator, a pressure acting on a joint portion between the inner panel and the main body panel. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle airbag device that disperses the main body panel and prevents the main body panel from being damaged.

  A vehicle airbag apparatus according to the present invention is provided with a main body panel constituting an airbag that is deployed and inflated by an inflating gas ejected from an inflator and an inner surface of the main body panel so as to overlap the main body panel. An air bag device for a vehicle having an inner panel in which a space portion is formed, and a joining line for joining the inner panel to the main body panel, leaving an opening edge portion for communicating the space portion and the inside of the main body panel. The joint line is located at the periphery of the collision point of the opening edge of the inner panel with respect to the joint line, and the joint line serves as a base edge, and the free edge is the opening edge. A tension buffer portion is formed which is set on the side and disperses the tension acting along the opening edge from the origin of the free edge to the base edge to the opening edge.

  The free end edge of the tension buffer is preferably formed by a slit formed on the opening edge side.

  It is preferable that the slits are sequentially enlarged from the starting point along the opening edge.

  It is preferable that the free end edge of the tension buffering portion is formed by a protruding portion that protrudes from the opening edge portion.

  The inner panel forms the space in the body panel for buffering the pressure of the inflation gas ejected from the inflator.

  In the vehicle airbag apparatus according to the present invention, when the airbag is deployed and inflated by the inflation gas ejected from the inflator, the pressure acting on the joint portion between the inner panel and the main body panel is dispersed. It is possible to prevent the main body panel from being damaged.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a vehicle airbag device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. A vehicle airbag apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment basically includes a main body constituting an airbag 3 that is deployed and inflated with an inflation gas G ejected from an inflator 2 as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3. The panel 4 and an inner panel 6 provided on the inner surface of the main body panel 4 so as to form a space 5 between the main body panel 4 and an opening edge 7 for communicating the space 5 and the inside of the main body panel 4 with each other. And a stitching line 8 as a joining line for joining the inner panel 6 to the main body panel 4. The stitching line 8 is a base edge 9 and the free edge 10 is on the opening edge 7 side, positioned integrally with the inner panel 6 at the periphery A of the collision portion of the opening edge 7 of the inner panel 6 with respect to the stitching line 8. Thus, the tension buffering portion 12 for dispersing the tension T acting along the opening edge 7 from the starting point 11 of the free edge 10 to the base edge 9 with respect to the opening edge 7 was formed.

  The shape of the deployed and inflated airbag 3 is shown in FIG. The airbag 3 is formed of a well-known material applied to the airbag 3, and is formed into a bag shape by stitching the main body panel 4. The main body panel 4 has a first main body panel 4a, an upper panel 4bx, and a lower panel 4by that are formed in a substantially elliptical shape by stitching the right end panel 4ax, the left end panel 4ay, and the front panel 4az, and is formed in a strip shape. Second body panel 4b. The first main body panel 4 a has a peripheral edge 13. In the drawing, the peripheral edge portion 13 includes an upper edge center portion 13a in the upper center, a lower edge center portion 13b in the lower center, and a left edge portion 13c extending from the left end of the upper edge center portion 13a to the left end of the lower edge center portion 13b. , And a right edge 13d extending from the right edge of the upper edge center 13a to the right edge of the lower edge center 13b. The upper edge central portion 13a of the first main body panel 4a is sewn with the upper edge portion 14a of the second main body panel 4b, and the lower edge central portion 13b is sewn with the lower edge portion 14b. The left edge 13c of the first body panel 4a is sewn with the left edge 14c of the second body panel 4b, and the right edge 13d is sewn with the right edge 14d. In the present embodiment, the airbag 3 is formed by two main body panels 4a and 4b, but the main body panel 4 may be formed by any number. Of course, each shape of the main body panels 4a and 4b may be other than an elliptical shape and a belt shape.

  FIG. 2A shows a joined state of the second main body panel 4b, the inner panel 6, and the inflator mounting portion panel 15. Further, FIG. 2B shows a cross-sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. The inner panel 6 and the inflator mounting part panel 15 are formed of a known material applied to the airbag 3. The second main body panel 4b includes an inner panel 6 and an inflator mounting portion panel 15 on its inner surface to prevent damage to the second main body panel 4b and the joint portion between the second main body panel 4b and the inflator 2 from the high-temperature, high-pressure inflation gas G. Are provided in layers. Each of the second main body panel 4b, the inner panel 6 and the inflator mounting portion panel 15 is formed with an inflator insertion hole 16 for mounting the inflator 2 at the center thereof, and these panels 4b, 6 and 15 are stitched together with the inflator insertion holes 16 overlapped at the same position. Then, the peripheral edge of the inflator insertion hole 16 is stitched with these panels 4b, 6 and 15 overlapped.

  The inner panel 6 is formed in a strip shape having substantially the same width as the second main body panel 4b, and the length thereof is shorter than that of the second main body panel 4b. The inner side panel 6 has its left side edge portion 17c overlapped with the left edge portion 14c of the second body panel 4b, and the right side edge portion 17d overlapped with the right edge portion 14d of the second body panel 4b. Sutured by a stitching line 8. A space 5 is formed between the inner panel 6 and the second main body panel 4b by stitching. The inner panel 6 and the second body panel 4b are stitched by the stitching line 8 only on the left and right sides, and the upper edge 17a and the lower edge 17b of the inner panel 6 are not stitched to the second body panel 4b. It remains in the opened state, and as a result, it is formed as an opening edge 7 that allows the space 5 and the interior of the airbag 3 to communicate with each other. The inner panel 6 and the inflator mounting portion panel 15 may be any number and may have any shape.

  On the stitching line 8, the stitching line 18 and the tip of the opening edge 7 intersect to form a collision point 18. FIG. 3A shows a stitched state of the second main body panel 4b and the inner panel 6 in the collision portion peripheral portion A which is a peripheral region of the collision portion 18.

  A slit 19 is formed in the peripheral portion A of the collision location so as to be positioned on the opening edge 7 side. The slit 19 is formed by being cut in a U-shape from a starting point 11 formed at an appropriate position of the collision portion peripheral portion A of the opening edge 7 toward the tip of the opening edge 7. As a result, the slit 19 is formed with two end edges facing each other with the starting point 11 interposed therebetween. These two edges consist of a free edge 10 located on the suture line 8 side and an opening edge side edge 20 facing this. The portion of the stitching line 8 facing the free edge 10 becomes the base edge 9.

  A tension buffering portion 12 is formed integrally with the inner panel 6 as a region extending from the starting point 11 to the base end edge 9 of the free end edge 10. When the expansion gas G flows into the space 5 through the opening edge 7, the tension buffer 12 applies the tension T acting along the opening edge 7 widened in an arch shape to the base edge 9. It becomes an area to be dispersed.

  Next, the operation of the vehicle airbag apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. When manufacturing the vehicle airbag device 1, the inner panel 6 is disposed inside the second main body panel 4b, the left edge portion 13c of the first main body panel 4a, the left edge portion 14c of the second main body panel 4b, The left side edge portion 17c of the inner panel 6 and the right side edge portion 13d, the right edge portion 14d, and the right side edge portion 17d are overlapped, and the inflator mounting portion panel 15 is further arranged on the inner side. The airbag 3 is formed by sewing around the inflator insertion hole 16 that is overlapped, and the airbag 3 is folded, and the inflator 2 is inserted through the inflator insertion hole 16 and fixed to the vehicle body.

  At the time of a vehicle collision, the expansion gas G ejected from the inflator 2 flows into the space portion 5 through the opening edge portion 7. At this time, the inflating gas G flowing into the space 5 causes the inner panel 6 to bulge with respect to the second main body panel 4b, and the opening edge 7 is expanded in an arch shape. Conventionally, the tension T acts along the opening edge 7, and thereby, the tensile force acts on the collision point 18 in a concentrated manner. The collision point 18 is a point where the tension T concentrates on the stitching line 8. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3 (b), by forming the free edge 10 of the slit 19, the tensile force is concentrated and the point is applied from the collision point 18 to the starting point 11 of the free edge 10. I shifted. As a result, when the inflation gas G flows into the space 5, the opening edge 7 is spread from the opening edge side edge 20 in an arch shape, leaving the free edge 10, and the tension T acting on the opening edge 7 Concentrates on the starting point 11. The concentrated tension T is distributed from the starting point 11 through the tension buffering portion 12 to the stitching line 8 that becomes the base end edge 9. For this reason, as in the past, when the inflation gas G flows in, the tension T acting along the opening edge 7 is concentrated on the collision location 18 and damage to the suture line 8, The resulting damage to the main body panel 4 can be prevented.

  Further, since the tension buffering portion 12 is formed integrally with the inner panel 6 by forming the free edge 10, it can be easily manufactured.

  A first modification according to the present embodiment is shown in FIG. In this modification, the slit 19 of the above embodiment is formed by sequentially enlarging from the starting point 11 along the opening edge 7.

  Also in this modified example, the free edge 10 is formed to face the stitching line 8 from the starting point 11. On the other hand, the opening edge side edge 20 is formed so as to be gently inclined along the opening edge 7 from the starting point 11. When the expansion gas G flows into the space 5, the opening edge 7 is expanded in an arch shape from the opening edge side edge 20, leaving the free edge 10, as in the above embodiment, and acts on this. Since the tension T to be distributed can be distributed from the starting point 11 to the stitching line 8 via the tension buffering portion 12, the same effect as that of the above embodiment is obtained.

  A second modification according to the present embodiment is shown in FIG. In this modification, the free end edge 10 of the tension buffer portion 12 of the above embodiment is formed by a protruding portion 21 that protrudes from the opening edge portion 7 along the stitching line 8. The protruding portion 21 is formed by protruding the periphery of the collision point 18 on the stitching line 8 of the inner panel 6 toward the opening edge 7 side. Specifically, the starting point 11 is set at the tip of the opening edge 7, and the free end edge 10 is extended from the base end edge 9 so that the inner panel 6 has an appropriate width and protrudes. It is formed.

  When the expansion gas G flows into the space 5, as in the above embodiment, the opening edge 7 is expanded from the starting point 11 in an arch shape, leaving the free edge 10, and the tension T acting on the opening T is Concentrate at the starting point 11 and disperse from the starting point 11 to the stitching line 8 via the tension buffering portion 12. For this reason, the effect similar to the said embodiment can be acquired.

  A third modification according to this embodiment is shown in FIG. In this modification, the stitching line 8 between the second body panel 4b and the inner panel 6 is formed separately from the stitching line 8a between the first body panel 4a and the second body panel 4b. Even in this case, when the inflating gas G flows into the space 5, the opening edge 7 is arched from the opening edge side edge 20, leaving the free edge 10, as in the above embodiment. The tension T acting on this is distributed from the starting point 11 of the free end edge 10 formed by the slit 19 to the stitching line 8 via the tension buffering portion 12, so that the same action as in the above embodiment is achieved. Demonstrate the effect.

  7 and 8 show another embodiment of a vehicle airbag apparatus according to the present invention. In this embodiment, the airbag 3 is a driver airbag 3 that is deployed and inflated from the steering wheel 22 of the driver's seat, and the inflation gas G that is ejected from the inflator 2 into the main body panel 4 by the inner panel 6. A space 5 for buffering the pressure is formed.

  In the vehicle airbag device 1 of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, a space portion 5 is formed between a main body panel 4 formed in a bag shape and an inner panel 6 sewn to the inner surface of the main body panel 4. The inflator 2 is disposed in the space 5. At the time of a vehicle collision, high-pressure inflation gas G is ejected from the inflator 2 fixed to the steering wheel 22, and the airbag 3 is instantly deployed and inflated toward the passenger P. In order to reduce the impact on the occupant P in such a case, the pressure of the inflation gas G is not directly transmitted to the main body panel 4 that expands and expands toward the occupant P side. An inner panel 6 is disposed as a pressure buffer.

  The inner panel 6 is formed in a circular shape as shown in FIG. The inner panel 6 is sewn to the main body panel 4 by stitching lines 8 provided at four positions at almost equal intervals along the circumferential direction. In the illustrated example, the inner panel 6 is formed in a circular shape, but may have other shapes. In addition, the stitching lines 8 are formed at four positions at almost equal intervals, but the stitching lines 8 do not have to be at equal intervals and are not limited to four locations.

  Opening edges 7 are formed between the stitching lines 8 at appropriate intervals. The start and end of the stitching line 8 are the collision points 18 that intersect the opening edge 7. A substantially L-shaped slit 23 is formed adjacent to the stitching line 8 on the space part 5 side of the collision part peripheral part A located around the collision part 18. The slit 23 has a starting point 11 set at the starting end along the stitching line 8, and the free edge 10 is formed facing the stitching line 8 from the starting point 11. In addition, the slit 23 forms an opening edge side edge 20 that faces the free edge 10 across the starting point 11.

  In the collision portion peripheral portion A, the portion of the stitching line 8 facing the free end edge 10 becomes the base end edge 9 as in the above embodiment. A tension buffering portion 12 is formed in a region extending from the starting point 11 of the free end edge 10 to the base end edge 9.

  In the present embodiment, the inflator 2 is disposed in the space portion 5, but when the inner panel 6 swells with respect to the main body panel 4 and the expansion gas G flows out from the opening edge portion 7, it has an arch shape. The tension T acts along the widened opening edge 7 as in the above embodiment.

  In this embodiment, by providing the slit 23 that forms the free end edge 10, the tension T acting on the opening edge portion 7 is concentrated on the starting point 11, and from the starting point 11 to the stitching line 8 via the tension buffering portion 12. I try to disperse. As a result, damage to the stitching line 8 and damage to the main body panel 4 resulting from the damage can be prevented, and the tension buffering portion 12 is formed integrally with the inner panel 6 so that it can be easily manufactured. The effect is the same as in the above embodiment.

  The airbag 3 of the present embodiment has been described by exemplifying the driver airbag 3 that is deployed and inflated from the steering wheel 22 of the driver seat, but is not limited thereto, and the passenger seat that is deployed and inflated from the instrument panel. Of course, it may be used as an air bag.

  In any of the above-described embodiments and modifications, it is a matter of course that the bonding between the panels is not limited to stitching, and other bonding means such as adhesion may be used.

  The vehicle airbag device 1 described above is a preferable example of the present invention, and other embodiments can be implemented or performed by various methods. The invention is not limited to the detailed shape, size, configuration, and the like of the components shown in the accompanying drawings unless otherwise specified in the present specification. In addition, expressions and terms used in the present specification are for the purpose of explanation, and are not limited thereto unless otherwise specified.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a deployed state of an airbag showing a preferred embodiment of a vehicle airbag apparatus according to the present invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the stitching | suture states of the main body panel, inner side panel, etc. of the vehicle airbag apparatus shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating an effect | action of the vehicle airbag apparatus shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing explaining the 1st modification of the airbag apparatus for vehicles concerning this invention. It is explanatory drawing explaining the 2nd modification of the airbag apparatus for vehicles concerning this invention. It is explanatory drawing explaining the 3rd modification of the airbag apparatus for vehicles concerning this invention. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a deployed and inflated state of a driver airbag device as another embodiment of a vehicle airbag device according to the present invention. It is a top view which shows the inner side panel applied to the airbag apparatus for vehicles shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing explaining a prior art example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vehicle airbag apparatus 2 Inflator 3 Airbag 4 Main body panel 5 Space part 6 Inner panel 7 Opening edge part 8 Stitching line 9 Base end edge 10 Free edge 11 Starting point 12 Tension buffer part A Collision location peripheral part G Expansion gas T tension

Claims (5)

  A main body panel constituting an airbag that is deployed and inflated with an inflating gas ejected from an inflator, an inner panel that is provided on the inner surface of the main body panel, and in which a space is formed between the main body panel; A vehicle airbag device having a joint line for joining the inner panel to the main body panel, leaving an opening edge portion for communicating the space portion and the inside of the main body panel, integrally with the inner panel, The joint line is located at the periphery of the collision point of the opening edge of the inner panel with respect to the joining line, the joining line becomes the base edge, and the free edge is set on the opening edge side, A vehicle airbag device characterized in that a tension buffer portion for dispersing a tension acting along the opening edge portion is formed from the starting point of the free end edge to the base end edge.   2. The vehicle airbag device according to claim 1, wherein the free end edge of the tension buffer portion is formed by a slit formed on the opening edge side.   The vehicle airbag device according to claim 2, wherein the slits are sequentially enlarged from the starting point along the opening edge.   The vehicle airbag device according to claim 1, wherein the free end edge of the tension buffer portion is formed by a protruding portion that protrudes from the opening edge portion.   The vehicle interior according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the inner panel forms the space portion in the main body panel for buffering the pressure of the inflation gas ejected from the inflator. Airbag device.

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