JPH1035398A - Device for absorbing collitional energy given to side part of car body - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently prevent secondary collision of an occupant at the time of side surface collision by installing an air bag so that the air bag is developed in a space part between the occupant and a door inside from the neighbourhood of a top part of an end part of a seat back at the time of expansive development of the air bag. SOLUTION: When impact detection sensors 5, 7 or 6, 8 works ON by side surface collision, a pair of air bags 22 internally installed in a front seat 1 on the side where an occupant is seated is expanded and developed to both of left and right sides of the occupant. The upper half of the body of the occupant moving to the collisional side is constrained on the front seat 1 moving to the anti-collisional side, and the occupant is moved to the anti-collisional side while attemperating inertial force applied on the occupant. Relative speed of a door 10 on the collisional side and the occupant is minimized, and secondary collision to the door 10, etc., on the collisional side and collision of the occupants against each other is certainly prevented.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for absorbing collision energy to the side of a vehicle body, and more particularly to a device for absorbing collision energy at the time of a side collision by an airbag inflated and deployed from a seat.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an airbag device for an automobile, an airbag that is inflated and deployed from a steering wheel or an instrument panel on a passenger seat side has been used.
Various proposals have been made and put to practical use, which buffer the inertial force applied to the occupant during a frontal collision and prevent the occupant from colliding with a steering wheel, an instrument panel, or the like in a secondary collision.

[0003] In the above airbag device, an ignition device (igniter) is operated based on an output signal from a collision detection sensor mounted on a vehicle body, and air is generated by the pressure of nitrogen gas generated from a gas generator (inflator). 2. Description of the Related Art Solid-type airbag devices that inflate and deploy bags instantaneously are widely used.

[0004] By the way, at the time of a side collision, the upper body of the occupant sitting on the seat on the collision side may collide with the door that has entered the vehicle interior. In other words, at the time of side collision, the door moves to the anti-collision side, and the seat moves to the anti-collision side via the side sill and the floor, so the lower body of the occupant sitting on the seat moves to the anti-collision side with the seat, Since the upper body of the occupant is almost free with respect to the seat,
It moves to the collision side and makes a secondary collision with the door.

Therefore, recently, in order to protect an occupant in the event of a side collision, for example, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-117957, an ignition device, a gas generator, an airbag and the like are provided in an armrest of a door. The airbag unit is assembled, a collision sensor is installed in the door or side sill, and in a side collision, the ignition device is activated at a predetermined timing so that the airbag fully deploys immediately before the occupant touches the door, and the fully deployed air There has also been proposed an airbag device in which the upper body of an occupant is received by a bag to prevent a secondary collision with a door or the like.

[0006]

In the airbag device described in the above publication, the upper body of the occupant relatively moved to the collision side can be received to prevent a secondary collision with a door or the like. Since the bag is deployed, the relative speed between the door on the collision side and the occupant is increased, and an impact force may be applied to the occupant.

Further, since the airbag unit is provided in the armrest of the door, it is not preferable because the positions of the airbag units are relatively shifted when the seat is slid in the front-rear direction. In addition, it is required that the airbag be reliably inflated and deployed in the space between the door moving to the anti-collision side and the upper body of the occupant moving to the collision side at the time of the side collision. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a collision energy absorbing device for a vehicle body side portion capable of effectively preventing a secondary collision of an occupant in a side collision.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a seat including a central portion located at a rear portion of an occupant when the occupant is seated, and an end portion located at a side portion of the occupant and bulging forward. In a collision energy absorbing device for a vehicle body side portion provided with a seat having a back, a side collision detection sensor for detecting a side collision with a vehicle body, and a gas activated by a side collision based on an output from the side collision detection sensor. And an airbag that expands and deploys when a gas generated from the gas generating means is supplied when the gas generating means operates. The seat back is attached to the seat so as to extend from the vicinity of the top of the end of the seat back to the space between the occupant and the inside of the door.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the seat back frame includes a fixing member fixed to the seat back frame, and the airbag is attached to the fixing member.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a seat having a seat back including a central portion located at a rear portion of an occupant when the occupant is seated, and an end portion located at a side portion of the occupant and bulging forward. A side collision detection sensor that detects a side collision with a vehicle body, and a gas generation that operates upon a side collision based on the output from the side collision detection sensor to generate gas Means, and an airbag which is inflated and deployed by supply of gas generated from the gas generating means when the gas generating means is actuated. A storage portion for storing the airbag is provided so as to be deployed from the vicinity of the top of the end portion of the back to the space between the occupant and the inside of the door.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a fixing member to which the airbag is attached is provided in the storage section, and the fixing member is fixed to the seatback frame.

In the fifth aspect of the present invention, the storage section is constituted by a pad member of a seat back.

[0013]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, in the event of a side collision, when the airbag is inflated and deployed, the occupant is located at the side of the seated occupant and near the top of the end portion of the seatback bulging forward. Can be deployed in the space between the door and the inside of the door.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the airbag is mounted on the highly rigid seat back frame via the fixing member, so that the mounting strength of the airbag can be increased.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the event of a side collision, when the airbag is inflated and deployed, the occupant is located at the side of the seated occupant and near the top of the end portion of the seatback bulging forward. Can be deployed in the space between the door and the inside of the door.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the airbag is mounted on the highly rigid seat back frame via the fixing member, and the mounting strength of the airbag can be increased.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the airbag can be stored in the seat back.

[0018]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, at the time of a side collision, the space between the occupant and the inside of the door from the vicinity of the top of the end portion of the seat back which is located on the side of the seated occupant and bulges forward. It can be deployed to parts, effectively cushioning the inertial force applied to the occupant, moving the occupant to the anti-collision side, reducing the relative speed between the collision side door and the occupant, and preventing secondary collision with the door etc. Even if the door is deformed due to a side collision, the airbag can be deployed reliably, the position of the seats does not fluctuate relatively when adjusting the sliding of the seat back and forth, and the influence of the occupant seating position when the airbag is deployed is minimized. It is possible to obtain the effect of being able to reliably deploy in the space between the occupant and the inside of the door while keeping the limit. Claim 2
According to the invention, the deployment direction of the airbag can be stabilized by increasing the mounting strength of the airbag.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the event of a side collision, the space between the occupant and the inside of the door is located from near the top of the end portion of the seat back which is located on the side of the seated occupant and bulges forward. It can be deployed and effectively cushions the inertial force applied to the occupant, moves the occupant to the anti-collision side, reduces the relative speed between the collision side door and the occupant, and can prevent a secondary collision with the door, etc. Even if the door is deformed due to a collision, the airbag can be deployed reliably, the position of the two does not change relatively when adjusting the sliding of the seat back and forth, and the influence of the occupant seating position when the airbag is deployed is minimized. Thus, it is possible to obtain the effect of being able to reliably deploy in the space between the occupant and the inside of the door.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the deployment direction of the airbag can be stabilized by increasing the mounting strength of the airbag.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the airbag can be stored in the seat back.

According to the present invention, in the event of a side collision, a secondary collision with a door or the like can be prevented, the airbag can be reliably deployed even if the door is deformed by the side collision, and the seat can be adjusted to slide in the front-rear direction. Occasionally, the position of the two members does not fluctuate relatively, and the influence of the occupant seating position is minimized when the airbag is deployed, so that the collision energy absorbing device for the vehicle body side can be reliably deployed in the space between the occupant and the inside of the door. Can be obtained.

[0023]

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

In this embodiment, the present invention is applied to an automobile airbag apparatus for further improving the safety for a front passenger in a side collision.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the airbag device comprises two sets of side collision airbag units (hereinafter referred to as side collision units) installed in the vicinity of the left end and the right end of the left and right front seats 1. 2) and the left and right 1 which are respectively provided at substantially the center of the seat cushion 9 of the left and right front seats 1.
A pair of sheet sensors 3 and 4, a pair of left and right first impact detection sensors 5 and 6 respectively mounted on the left and right doors 10, and a pair of left and right second impact detection sensors 7 respectively mounted on the left and right side sills・ 8 is provided.

The side collision unit 2 will be described. The side collision unit 2 is installed in the vicinity of the left end and the right end of the left and right front seats 1, respectively. Of the front seat 1 provided near the left end will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 6, a long and narrow receiving portion 12 is formed in the front and rear direction in the rear half of the seat cushion 9 near the left end. A vertically elongated storage section 14 is formed to be continuous with the section 12, and a casing 15 that opens in the front half of the storage section 12 is provided inside a lower portion of the seat cushion 9,
A lower end surface of the casing 15 is fixed to a frame-shaped seat cushion frame 16, and fixed plates 17 and 18 are fixed to a rear end surface of the rear half of the housing portion 12 and a rear end surface of the housing portion 14. The fixed plate 18 is connected to a hollow pipe-shaped seat back frame 21 via a connecting rod 20.

The bag-shaped airbag 22 is provided in both of the storage sections 12.1.
4 is accommodated in a state of being folded in a substantially L-shape,
The outer peripheral portion at the base end of the airbag 22 is fixed in a substantially airtight manner over the fixing plates 17 and 18 and the casing 15, and the gas generated in the casing 15 is instantaneously generated by the reaction between the gas generating agent and the flame-enhancing agent. A gas generator 23 is housed therein, and a firing device 24 for generating heat by energization and reacting the gas generating agent with the flame enhancer is provided inside the gas generator 23.
A plurality of vent holes (not shown) for discharging gas in the airbag 22 are formed near the base end of the inside, and when the ignition device 24 is energized, the gas generating agent reacts with the flame enhancer. As a result, a large amount of gas is instantaneously generated from the gas generator 23, and this gas is supplied into the airbag 22. Incidentally, the reaction speed of the gas generating agent and the inflammation agent, the capacity of the air bag 22 and the opening area of the vent hole are respectively predetermined such that the air bag 22 is fully deployed in about 10 msec after the operation of the ignition device 24, respectively. Is set to a value.

A pair of left and right lids 25a is formed integrally with the pad member 25 of the seat cushion 9 above the housing 12 so that the airbag 22 can be deployed from the front seat 1. Is closed via a skin 26 of the seat cushion 9, and a substantially T-shaped perforation 27 is formed on the skin 26 to the vicinity of the bent portion of the airbag 22 as shown in FIG. A pair of left and right lids 28a is formed integrally with the pad member 28 of the seat back 13, and the lid 28a is closed via a skin 29 of the seat back 22, and the skin 29 has a substantially T-shaped perforation 30.
Is formed up to the vicinity of the bent portion of the airbag 22, and the airbag 22 breaks the skins 26 and 29 along the perforations 27 and 30 by the gas generated from the gas generator 23, and FIG.
As shown by the imaginary line in FIG.

Each of the shock detection sensors 5 to 8 is a known acceleration sensitive sensor. As shown in FIG. 1, the first shock detection sensors 5 and 6 have front and rear ends connected to the door outer panel 31. The second impact detection sensors 7 and 8 are fixed to substantially the center of the vertical wall portion of the side sill 11 in the front-rear direction, and the first impact detection sensors 5 and 6 are fixed to the substantially central portion of the outer end surface of the reinforcing member 32 oriented in the direction. The sensitivity is set relatively low, and when the impact force at the time of collision exceeds a predetermined value, the ON operation is performed.
The impact detection sensors 7 and 8 are set to have relatively high sensitivity, and are turned ON even with a small impact force. Incidentally, the impact force at the time of the side collision is detected by the impact detection sensor 5 via the door outer panel 31 or the like.
, The impact detection sensors 5 to 8 are turned ON about 10 msec after the side collision.

The seat sensors 3 and 4 are turned on when the occupant sits on the seat cushion 9.

As shown in FIG. 7, the first impact detection sensor 5
6 is connected in series to the second impact detection sensors 7 and 8, respectively.
Left impact detection sensors 5 and 7 and right impact detection sensor 6
8 is connected in parallel, the left and right sheet sensors 3.4 are connected in series to the impact detection sensors 7.8, and the left sheet sensor 3 is connected in series with the heater 24A of the pair of left firing devices 24 connected in parallel. The heater 24B of the pair of right firing devices 24 connected in parallel to the right seat sensor 4
Are connected in series.

Next, the operation of the airbag device will be described.

When the impact detection sensor 5.7 or 6.8 is turned ON due to a side collision, a pair of airbags 22 installed in the front seat 1 on the side where the occupant is seated are released.
The occupant moves to the anti-collision side while the upper body of the occupant moving toward the collision side is restrained by the front seat 1 moving to the anti-collision side, and the inertia force applied to the occupant is reduced, while expanding and deploying to the left and right sides of the occupant. Thus, the relative speed between the collision side door 10 and the occupant is reduced, and the secondary collision with the collision side door 10 and the collision between the occupants are reliably prevented.

Further, since the airbag 22 is provided over the seat cushion 9 and the seatback 13, the airbag 22 can be reliably deployed even if the door 10 is deformed. Since the relative positional relationship of the occupants hardly fluctuates, the occupant can be reliably received.

As described above, the occupant is restrained to the front seat 1 by the airbag 22 inflated and deployed from the front seat 1 to the left and right sides of the occupant, so that the occupant is reliably received and the inertial force applied to the occupant is effectively buffered. Thus, the occupant is moved to the anti-collision side, and the secondary collision with the door 10 or the like on the collision side and the collision between the occupants can be reliably prevented.

Further, the airbag 22 is used for the front seat 1.
The airbag 22 can be reliably deployed even if the door 10 is deformed due to a side collision.

In this embodiment, the side collision unit 2 of the type that generates gas by reacting a gas generating agent and a flame enhancer is applied. However, an air bag of a type that generates gas by another method is used. The same applies to units.

The airbag device can be applied to a rear seat in the same manner as described above.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an automobile, showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cutaway perspective view of a main part of a front seat, showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part of a front seat, showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line VV of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line VI-VI of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram of an airbag device showing an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1: front seat 5.6: first impact detection sensor 7.8: second impact detection sensor 9: seat cushion 13: seat back 22: air bag 23: gas generator 24: ignition device

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A vehicle body side portion provided with a seat having a seat back comprising a central portion located at a rear portion of an occupant when the occupant is seated, and an end portion swelling forward located at a side portion of the occupant. A side collision detection sensor that detects a side collision with a vehicle body, gas generation means that operates upon a side collision based on an output from the side collision detection sensor to generate gas, An airbag that inflates and deploys when a gas generated from the gas generating means is supplied when the means operates, wherein the airbag is connected to an occupant from near the top of the end portion of the seatback when the airbag inflates and deploys. A collision energy absorbing device for a vehicle body side portion, which is attached to a seat so as to be deployed in a space between the inside of a door and the door. 2. The vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a seat back frame and a fixing member fixed to the seat back frame, wherein the airbag is attached to the fixing member. Energy absorber. 3. A vehicle body side portion provided with a seat having a seat back including a central portion located at a rear portion of the occupant when the occupant is seated and an end portion swelling forward and located at a side portion of the occupant. A side collision detection sensor that detects a side collision with a vehicle body, gas generation means that operates upon a side collision based on an output from the side collision detection sensor to generate gas, An airbag that is inflated and deployed by the supply of gas generated from the gas generating means when the means is operated, and has an end portion of the seatback at an end portion of the seatback when the airbag is inflated and deployed. A collision energy absorbing device for a vehicle body side portion, wherein a storage portion for storing an airbag is provided so as to be deployed from a vicinity to a space between an occupant and the inside of a door. 4. The vehicle body side portion according to claim 2, wherein a fixing member to which the airbag is attached is provided in the storage portion, and the fixing member is fixed to a seatback frame. Energy absorption device for collision. 5. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said storage portion is constituted by a pad member of a seat back.