Front airbag for a vehicle

Abstract

Front airbag for a vehicle, comprising: an airbag cushion (100) comprising a rear panel (101) disposed on a side of a steering wheel (601) and a front panel (103) disposed on a side of an occupant and having a shape corresponding to a shape of the rear panel (101), the rear panel (101) and the front panel (103) being provided with projecting supports (105) formed on a first side and a second side of lower end portions thereof; a first tether (201) connecting a central portion of the front panel (103) corresponding to a loading position (107) of the occupant's head to an airbag housing (603); second tether straps (203) connecting the lower end portion of the front panel (103) corresponding to a loading position (109) of the occupant's chest to the airbag case (603) and having a shorter length than a length of the first tether strap (201); and a first seam line (401) connecting the front panel (103) to the rear panel (101), formed in a position spaced apart from boundaries of the projecting supports (105) in a direction toward a center of the front panel (103), and configured to tear when pressure with an intensity greater than a certain value is applied to the first seam line (401).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to an airbag arranged in front of an occupant of a vehicle, and more particularly to a front airbag which, in an oblique impact, prevents a collision of an occupant with a structure such as a baffle or a center dashboard and prevents injury to the occupant's neck or skull due to rotation of the occupant's head.

[0002] As interest in occupant safety increases along with vehicle functionality and comfort, the importance of safety devices for protecting occupants in the event of an accident has gradually increased. In particular, among occupant safety devices, an airbag system is a fundamental protective device that disperses the impact of a vehicle occupant in a collision.

[0003] Below this, a front airbag in the basic form of the airbag system is arranged in front of an occupant and is configured to prevent a direct collision of the occupant with various structures in a vehicle in the event of an impact and to dampen the impact energy transmitted from the outside.

[0004] However, the conventional airbag cannot adequately protect an occupant and therefore may cause a direct collision of the occupant with a center dashboard in an oblique impact or injure the occupant's neck and skull during a process of movement of the occupant's head along the surface of the deployed airbag.

[0005] EP 1 775 177 A1 describes a front airbag for a vehicle, comprising an airbag cushion having a rear panel arranged on a side of a steering wheel and a front panel arranged on a side of an occupant and having a shape corresponding to a shape of the rear panel, the rear panel and the front panel being provided with projecting supports formed on a first side and a second side of lower end portions thereof, a first tether connecting a central portion of the front panel corresponding to a loading position of the occupant's head to an airbag housing, second tether connecting the lower end portion of the front panel corresponding to a loading position of the occupant's chest to the airbag housing and having a shorter length than a length of the first tether.

[0006] Another front airbag for a vehicle is known from DE 10 2011 117 036 A1.

[0007] The invention provides a front airbag which, in the event of an oblique impact, prevents a collision of an occupant with a structure such as a baffle plate or a central dashboard and prevents injury to the occupant's neck or skull due to rotation of the occupant's head.

[0008] This is achieved according to the invention by a front airbag for a vehicle according to the features of claim 1. Advantageous further developments are described in the subclaims.

[0009] According to the invention, there is provided a front airbag for a vehicle, comprising an airbag cushion having a rear panel arranged on the side of a steering wheel and a front panel arranged on the side of an occupant and having a shape corresponding to the shape of the rear panel, the rear panel and the front panel being provided with projecting supports formed on both sides of the lower end portions thereof, a first tether (or tension cord) connecting the central portion of the front panel corresponding to a loading position (or a load, feed, or support position) of the occupant's head to an airbag case, and second tethers connecting the lower end portion of the front panel corresponding to a loading position (or a load, feed, or support position) of the occupant's head to an airbag case.resting position) of the occupant's chest, to the airbag housing and have a smaller (or shorter) length than that of the first tether.

[0010] The front airbag for a vehicle may further include lower side panels each disposed between both projecting posts of the rear panel and the front panel and connecting the projecting posts of the rear panel and the front panel to each other.

[0011] The front airbag for a vehicle further comprises a first stitching line connecting the front panel to the rear panel, formed in a position spaced apart from the boundaries (or boundaries or edges) of the projecting supports in a direction toward the center of the front panel, and ruptured when a pressure with an intensity greater than a certain value is applied to the first stitching line.

[0012] Every second tether may be a panel tether, and a coupling line of every second tether with the front panel may be formed in the vertical direction.

[0013] The second retaining straps may be provided in the width direction of the vehicle.

[0014] The front airbag for a vehicle may further include a rupture chamber (or tear chamber) disposed between the second tethers and the airbag case, an actuator that guides a part of gas supplied to an airbag chamber via a gas generator to an inside of the rupture chamber, and a second stitching line that penetrates the rupture chamber in an undeployed state to connect the second tethers to the rupture chamber and ruptures when gas is supplied to the inside of the rupture chamber.

[0015] The front airbag for a vehicle may further include a control device configured to control whether the actuator is actuated or not and detect whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt. The control device may control the actuator so that it does not supply gas to the inside of the rupture chamber when it is determined that the occupant is wearing a seatbelt.

[0016] The front airbag for a vehicle may further include a control device configured to control whether the actuator is actuated or not and detect whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt. The control device may control the actuator to supply gas to the inside of the tear chamber to tear the second stitching line when it is determined that the occupant is not wearing a seatbelt.

[0017] The invention is explained in more detail with reference to the drawing. The drawing shows: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a front airbag for a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the front airbag for a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 side views of the front airbag for a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; Fig. 5 is a plan view of a front panel of the front airbag for a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; Fig. 6 is a plan view of a rear panel of the front airbag for a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; Fig. 7 is a plan view of a lower side panel of the front airbag for a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; and Fig. 8 and Fig. 9 views of a rupture chamber of the front airbag for a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention before and after operation.

[0018] It should be understood that the attached drawings are not necessarily to scale and present a somewhat simplified representation of various features illustrating the basic principles of the invention. The specific design features of the present invention, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, positions, and shapes disclosed herein, will be determined in part by the particular intended application and usage environment.

[0019] In the figures, reference numerals refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout the individual figures of the drawing.

[0020] Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the invention has been described in connection with exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the present description is not intended to limit the invention to these exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the invention is intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents, and other embodiments which may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

[0021] With reference to the Fig. 1 to 9, a front airbag for a vehicle according to the invention comprises an airbag cushion 100 having a rear panel 101 arranged on the side of a steering wheel 601 and a front panel 103 arranged on the side of an occupant and having a shape corresponding to the shape of the rear panel 101, the rear panel 101 and the front panel 103 being provided with projecting supports 105 formed on both sides of the lower end portions thereof, a first tether 201 connecting a central portion of the front panel 103 corresponding to a position 107 in which the occupant's head is located to an airbag case 603, and second tethers 203 connecting the lower end portion of the front panel 103 corresponding to a position 109 in which the occupant's chest is located to the airbag housing 603 and have a shorter length than that of the first tether 201.

[0022] Generally, the average time taken for impact energy to be transmitted to an occupant from the onset of a vehicle collision is about 100 ms (milliseconds) or less, meaning the impact is transmitted to the occupant within a very short time. An airbag should be deployed in such a way that it protects the occupant before the impact energy is transmitted to the occupant. In this case, the airbag should begin to deploy within 40 ms and be fully deployed within 100 ms. Therefore, the speed at which gas is supplied to the inside of the airbag cushion 100 is very high, and therefore the deployment pressure of the airbag cushion 100 is very high.

[0023] In a collision, it is safer for the occupant to be protected by the airbag cushion 100 than to collide with a vehicle structure, but this is not absolute. The airbag cushion 100 may impact the occupant with a high deployment pressure during the deployment process, thus injuring the occupant. However, if the airbag is not deployed, a more serious injury to the occupant occurs, and therefore, many studies have been conducted on adjusting the airbag deployment pressure or distributing the airbag deployment pressure by changing an initial contact area between the airbag cushion 100 and the occupant.

[0024] According to the invention, the deployment pressure of the airbag cushion 100 transmitted to the occupant is distributed by adjusting the shape of the airbag. With reference to Fig. 3 and Fig. 4, the degree of deployment of a portion of the airbag cushion 100 which first contacts the occupant's head is increased toward the occupant by the first tether 201 and quickly limits displacement (or displacement) of the occupant's head before the displacement of the occupant's head increases, so that injury to the occupant due to fracture of the occupant's neck is minimized.

[0025] Further, the degree of deployment of the airbag cushion 100 toward the occupant's chest is reduced by the second tether belts 203 having a shorter length than that of the first tether belt 201, and therefore the airbag cushion 100 is prevented from striking the occupant's chest during the airbag deployment operation.

[0026] As in Fig. 1, the projecting supports 105 are formed on both sides of the lower end portions of the rear panel 101 and the front panel 103 to first support both shoulders of the occupant, thereby dispersing the transmission of energy due to the deployment pressure of the airbag cushion 100 and the impact during the process of loading the occupant on the airbag cushion 100.

[0027] The front airbag for a vehicle according to the invention may further comprise lower side panels 301 each disposed between both projecting supports 105 of the rear panel 101 and the front panel 103, thus connecting the projecting supports 105 of the rear panel 101 and the front panel 103 to each other.

[0028] The lower side panels 301 can increase the thickness of the airbag cushion 100 between the protruding supports 105 of the rear panel 101 and the front panel 103. Accordingly, the supporting force of the two protruding supports 105 is increased, and therefore, a greater amount of energy can be distributed across the occupant's shoulders.

[0029] The front airbag for a vehicle according to the invention may further comprise a first seam line 401 connecting the front panel 103 to the rear panel 101, formed in a position spaced from the boundaries of the projecting supports 105 toward the center of the front panel 103, and ruptured when a pressure of an intensity greater than a certain value is applied thereto.

[0030] The protruding supports 105 can disperse energy by supporting the occupant's shoulders, but increase the volume of the airbag cushion 100 and thus may affect the deployment speed of the airbag cushion 100. Therefore, it is necessary to control the protruding supports 105 by selectively deploying the protruding supports 105.

[0031] In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, during the process of loading the occupant on the airbag cushion 100 after deployment of the airbag cushion 100, when the occupant's body is relatively small or light, the protruding supports 105 are not deployed, and when the occupant's body is relatively large or heavy, the protruding supports 105 are deployed in advancing the dispersion of the impact energy.

[0032] More detailed is how in the Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, the first seam line 401 is configured to tear when a pressure with an intensity greater than a certain value is applied thereto, and therefore, when an occupant whose body is large or heavy is seated in the vehicle, the first tear line 401 tears such that the projecting supports 105 are deployed.

[0033] Each second tether 203 may be a panel tether, and a coupling line of each second tether 203 to the front panel 103 may be formed in the vertical direction. The second tethers 203 may be provided in the width direction of the vehicle.

[0034] When the second tethers 203 are provided with a panel shape, the deployment direction of the protruding supports 105 may be curved toward the occupant. This can improve the ability of the protruding supports 105 to support the occupant's shoulders.

[0035] The front airbag for a vehicle according to the invention may further include a rupture chamber 501 disposed between the second tethers 203 and the airbag case 603, an actuator 503 that guides a part of the gas supplied to an airbag chamber via a gas generator to the inside of the rupture chamber 501, and a second seam line 403 that penetrates the rupture chamber 501 in the undeployed state to connect the rupture chamber 501 to the second tethers 203 and ruptures when gas is supplied to the inside of the rupture chamber 501.

[0036] With reference to the Fig. 8 and Fig.9, the second seam line 403 penetrates the tear chamber 501 in the undeployed state and therefore fixes the second tethers 203. Here, when gas is supplied to the tear chamber 501 via the actuator 503, the tear chamber 501 is deployed, the second seam line 403 is torn, the fixation of the second tethers 203 is released, and the deployment degree of the lower end portion of the airbag cushion 100 is increased.

[0037] Accordingly, the degree of deployment of the lower end portion of the airbag cushion 100 can be selectively adjusted.

[0038] The front airbag for a vehicle according to the invention may further include a control device configured to control whether the actuator 503 is actuated or not and detect whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt. The control device may control the actuator 503 so as not to supply gas to the inside of the rupture chamber 501 when it is determined that the occupant is wearing a seatbelt.

[0039] When the occupant wears a seat belt, the seat belt primarily restrains the occupant's upper body, and therefore, the intensity of the occupant's load on the airbag cushion 100 is reduced. Here, in order to prevent the occupant from being impacted by the deployment pressure of the airbag cushion 100, it is necessary to reduce the degree of deployment of the lower end portion of the airbag cushion 100 by means of the second tethers 203, and therefore, the control device blocks the supply of gas to the rupture chamber 501 by means of the actuator 503.

[0040] The control device configured to control whether the actuator 503 is operated or not and detects whether the occupant is wearing a seat belt or not may control the actuator 503 to supply gas to the inside of the tear chamber 501 to tear the second seam line 403 when it is determined that the occupant is not wearing a seat belt.

[0041] If the occupant is not wearing a seatbelt, the intensity of the occupant's load on the airbag cushion 100 is very high. In this case, if the thickness of the airbag cushion 100 is not ensured, the occupant may directly collide with a vehicle structure, such as the steering wheel 601 or the impact plate. Therefore, the controller controls the actuator 503 to supply gas to the inside of the rupture chamber 501 to rupture the second seam line 403.

[0042] Accordingly, the restriction of the deployment degree of the lower end portion of the airbag cushion 100 by the second tethers 203 is released, so that the deployment degree of the lower end portion of the airbag cushion 100 can be increased and a collision between the occupant and the vehicle structure can be prevented.

[0043] As can be seen from the above description, a front airbag for a vehicle according to the invention can prevent injury to the neck or skull of an occupant due to impact energy applied to the occupant during a collision. Furthermore, the impact energy transmitted to the occupant's chest or the impact energy due to the airbag's deployment pressure is dispersed to the occupant's shoulders, so that injury to the occupant can be minimized.

[0044] For ease of explanation and accurate definition of the appended claims, the terms "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", "front", "rear", etc., are used to describe the features of the exemplary embodiments with reference to the positions of those features as shown in the figures.

Claims

[1] Front airbag for a vehicle, comprising: an airbag cushion (100) comprising a rear panel (101) disposed on a side of a steering wheel (601) and a front panel (103) disposed on a side of an occupant and having a shape corresponding to a shape of the rear panel (101), the rear panel (101) and the front panel (103) being provided with projecting supports (105) formed on a first side and a second side of lower end portions thereof; a first tether (201) connecting a central portion of the front panel (103) corresponding to a loading position (107) of the occupant's head to an airbag housing (603); second tether straps (203) connecting the lower end portion of the front panel (103) corresponding to a loading position (109) of the occupant's chest to the airbag case (603) and having a shorter length than a length of the first tether strap (201); and a first seam line (401) connecting the front panel (103) to the rear panel (101), formed in a position spaced apart from boundaries of the projecting supports (105) in a direction toward a center of the front panel (103), and configured to tear when pressure with an intensity greater than a certain value is applied to the first seam line (401). [2] A front airbag according to claim 1, further comprising lower side panels (301) each disposed between both projecting supports (105) of the rear panel (101) and the front panel (103) and connecting the projecting supports (105) of the rear panel (101) and the front panel (103) to each other. [3] A front airbag according to claim 1 or 2, wherein each second tether (203) is a panel tether, and a coupling line of each second tether (203) with the front panel (103) is formed in a vertical direction thereof. [4] A front airbag according to claim 3, wherein the second tethers (203) are provided in a width direction of the vehicle. [5] Front airbag according to one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: a tear chamber (501) arranged between the second tethers (203) and the airbag housing (603); an actuating device (503) which directs a portion of the gas supplied to an airbag chamber via a gas generator to an inside of the rupture chamber (501); and a second seam line (403) penetrating the tear chamber (501) in an undeployed state to connect the second tethers (203) to the tear chamber (501) and configured to rupture when gas is supplied to the inside of the tear chamber (501). [6] The front airbag according to claim 5, further comprising a control device configured to control whether the actuating device (503) is actuated and detect whether the occupant is wearing a seat belt, wherein the control device is configured to control the actuating device (503) not to supply gas to the inside of the rupture chamber (501) when it is determined that the occupant is wearing the seat belt. [7] The front airbag according to claim 5, further comprising a control device configured to control whether the actuating device (503) is actuated and detect whether the occupant is wearing a seat belt, the control device being configured to control the actuating device (503) to supply gas to the inside of the rupture chamber (501) to rupture the second stitching line (403) when it is determined that the occupant is not wearing the seat belt.

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