airbag

Abstract

To provide airbags that can adequately protect the occupants. [Solution] The airbag 1 comprises an airbag body 10 having an occupant-side panel 12 located on the occupant side when inflated, and an anti-occupant-side panel 13 located on the steering wheel 3 side when inflated, with a gas inlet 15 in the center for introducing gas, and one and other connecting members 20, 21 that connect the occupant-side panel 12 and the anti-occupant-side panel 13 inside the airbag body 10. One end 20a of one connecting member 20 and one end 21a of the other connecting member 21 are in symmetrical positions with respect to the center of the occupant-side panel 12, the other end 20b of one connecting member 20 is near the gas inlet 15 of the anti-occupant-side panel 13, and the other end 21b of the other connecting member 21 is at a position away from the gas inlet 15 of the anti-occupant-side panel 13.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an airbag disposed on a vehicle steering wheel.

Background Art

[0002] In vehicles such as automobiles, an airbag device for protecting and restraining an occupant is provided on the steering wheel of the driver's seat. Usually, the airbag for the driver's seat is formed in a circular shape, expands and deploys between the occupant and the steering wheel, and can stably protect the occupant by acting on the rim portion, which is an annular gripping portion, as a reaction plate (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in recent years, in the steering wheel, a so-called joystick type in which at least the upper part, that is, the rim part on the 12 o'clock side of the analog clock, is missing may be used. In the case of an airbag applied to such a non-circular irregular-shaped steering wheel, in order to stably protect the occupant, it is required to suppress the movement of the airbag from the upper part where the rim part does not exist toward the front of the vehicle.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of such points, and an object thereof is to provide an airbag that can appropriately protect an occupant.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] An airbag according to an aspect of the present invention is an airbag disposed on the steering wheel of a vehicle having a gripping portion for being grasped by an occupant, and comprises an airbag body having an occupant-side panel located on the occupant side when inflated, and an anti-occupant-side panel located on the steering wheel side when inflated, having a gas inlet in the center for introducing gas, and one and another connecting members that connect the occupant-side panel and the anti-occupant-side panel inside the airbag body, wherein one end of the one connecting member and one end of the other connecting member are in symmetrical positions with respect to the central portion of the occupant-side panel, the other end of the one connecting member is near the gas inlet of the anti-occupant-side panel, and the other end of the other connecting member is at a position away from the gas inlet of the anti-occupant-side panel. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, the occupants can be adequately protected. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a schematic end view showing the inflated state of an airbag according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] These are schematic end views illustrating the occupant restraint behavior by the airbag in the order of (a) to (c). [Figure 3] This is a front view showing an example of a steering wheel equipped with the same airbag. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0010] In Figure 1, 1 represents the airbag. In this embodiment, the airbag 1 is an example of an airbag system (DAB) for the driver's seat. This airbag system consists of the airbag 1 and an inflator 2, which is a gas generator that supplies gas to the airbag 1, housed within a case, and is mounted on the steering wheel 3, which is the mounting part of a vehicle such as an automobile. In the event of a vehicle collision, the airbag 1 inflates and deploys from the case, protecting the driver and other occupants from the impact of the collision. The steering wheel 3 is mounted on the steering shaft, which is a steering shaft that is normally installed in the vehicle in an inclined position. Hereafter, the directions of up, down, front, back, left, and right are described based on the direction as seen from the perspective of an occupant seated in the driver's seat, with arrow U direction being the up, arrow D direction being the down, arrow FR direction being the front, arrow RR direction being the rear, arrow L direction being the left, and arrow R direction being the right. Furthermore, the position and shape of each part of the steering wheel 3 will be described based on the neutral position shown in Figure 3.

[0011] As shown in Figure 3, the steering wheel 3 has a central boss portion 5 to which an airbag device is attached and which is spline-connected to the steering shaft. A rim portion (grip) 6, which is a gripping portion for the driver or other occupant to grasp and operate, is positioned outside the boss portion 5, and the boss portion 5 and the rim portion 6 are connected by spoke portions 7, which are connecting portions. In this embodiment, the rim portion 6 is set from both the left and right sides downwards relative to the boss portion 5. That is, the steering wheel 3 of this embodiment is a modified steering wheel of the yoke type, also known as a control stick type, which has a missing area 8 in the circumferential direction of the steering wheel 3 where the rim portion 6 does not exist at least in the upper part, i.e., on the 12 o'clock side of an analog clock. In the illustrated example, the rim portion 6 curves in an arc shape and extends vertically at the left and right sides of the boss portion 5, and extends linearly horizontally at the position below the boss portion 5. Therefore, the steering wheel 3 as a whole has a horizontally elongated shape, being long horizontally and short vertically.

[0012] The spoke portion 7 can be set arbitrarily as long as it can stably connect the rim portion 6 and the boss portion 5, but in this embodiment, for example, it extends from the left and right sides of the boss portion 5, that is, from the 9 o'clock to 3 o'clock position on an analog clock.

[0013] The airbag 1 shown in Figure 1 comprises a bag-shaped airbag body 10 that inflates when gas is introduced. The airbag body 10 is circular when viewed from the front, whether in an inflated state or in an unfolded, uninflated state. The outer shape of the airbag body 10 is larger than the outer shape of the handle 3, and when inflated, it is large enough to cover the handle 3 when viewed from the front (shown by the dashed line in Figure 3). The airbag body 10 is folded into a predetermined folded shape and stored inside the case, and is inflated and deployed by gas introduced from the inflator 2.

[0014] The airbag main unit 10 is configured with an occupant-side panel 12 located on the occupant side, i.e., the rear side, when inflated, and an anti-occupant-side panel 13 located on the opposite side, i.e., the steering wheel side, i.e., the front side.

[0015] The occupant-side panel 12 is the surface that faces the occupant when the airbag body 10 is inflated and protects and restrains the occupant. The non-occupant-side panel 13 is the surface that faces the handle 3 when the airbag body 10 is inflated and generates a reaction force. The occupant-side panel 12 and the non-occupant-side panel 13 are each formed in a circular shape when viewed from the front. The occupant-side panel 12 and the non-occupant-side panel 13 are each made of one or more base fabrics. At least one of the occupant-side panel 12 and the non-occupant-side panel 13 may have a reinforcing panel, such as a reinforcing cloth, overlapped on the inside at a predetermined position, or may be coated. The peripheral edges of the occupant-side panel 12 and the non-occupant-side panel 13 are joined to each other by a joint such as sewing, and this joint makes the airbag body 10 bag-shaped.

[0016] A gas inlet 15 is opened in the center of the non-occupant side panel 13. The gas inlet 15 is opened, for example, in a circular shape, in an area including the center of the non-occupant side panel 13. An inflator 2 is attached to the gas inlet 15 via a mounting member such as a retainer, and gas is introduced from the inflator 2 into the airbag body 10 via the gas inlet 15. The non-occupant side panel 13, together with the inflator 2, is fixed to the case body via a mounting member at a position around the gas inlet 15. In addition, the non-occupant side panel 13 may have exhaust holes (vent holes) formed therein to release some of the gas and maintain the internal pressure of the airbag body 10 appropriately when the occupant is being protected and restrained.

[0017] Inside the airbag body 10, one connecting member 20 and the other connecting member 21 are arranged. In other words, a pair of connecting members are arranged inside the airbag body 10.

[0018] The first and second connecting members 20, 21 are also called tethers, tether belts, etc., and are formed from, for example, a base fabric. The first and second connecting members 20, 21 connect the occupant-side panel 12 and the non-occupant-side panel 13, and regulate the distance between the occupant-side panel 12 and the non-occupant-side panel 13 when the airbag body 10 is inflated, thereby maintaining a constant or substantially constant inflated shape of the airbag body 10. For example, in this embodiment, the first and second connecting members 20, 21 are members that extend in a planar manner in the front-rear and left-right directions, with the second connecting member 21 positioned below the first connecting member 20.

[0019] One connecting member 20 is connected at one end portion 20a side to the occupant side panel 12 by one joining portion such as sewing, and at the other end portion 20b side to the non-occupant side panel 13 by another joining portion 23 such as sewing. Here, the one end portion 20a refers to the position rising from the occupant side panel 12, and the other end portion 20b refers to the position rising from the non-occupant side panel 13. One end portion 20a of the one connecting member 20 is at a position above the central portion with respect to the central portion of the occupant side panel 12 near the central portion. Also, the other end portion 20b of the one connecting member 20 is at a position above the gas inlet 15 with respect to the gas inlet 15 at the periphery of the central portion of the non-occupant side panel 13, that is, at a position near the gas inlet 15. In the present embodiment, the other end portion 20b of the one connecting member 20 is located in the central portion of the defect range 8 of the steering wheel 3, that is, in the range including the central portion in the left-right direction in the defect range 8.

[0020] Another connecting member 21 is connected at one end portion 21a side to the occupant side panel 12 by one joining portion such as sewing, and at the other end portion 21b side to the non-occupant side panel 13 by another joining portion 25 such as sewing. Here, the one end portion 21a refers to the position rising from the occupant side panel 12, and the other end portion 21b refers to the position rising from the non-occupant side panel 13. One end portion 21a of the another connecting member 21 is at a position below the central portion with respect to the central portion of the occupant side panel 12 near the central portion. One end portion 21a of the another connecting member 21 and one end portion 20a of the one connecting member 20 are at positions symmetric (including substantially symmetric) with respect to the central portion of the occupant side panel 12. That is, one end portion 21a of the another connecting member 21 and one end portion 20a of the one connecting member 20 have equal (including substantially equal) distances from the central portion of the occupant side panel 12. Also, the other end portion 21b of the another connecting member 21 is at a position below the gas inlet 15 with respect to the gas inlet 15, separated downward from the periphery of the central portion of the non-occupant side panel 13, that is, at a position near the gas inlet 15. The other end portion 21b of the another connecting member 21 and the other end portion 20b of the one connecting member 20 are at positions asymmetric in the vertical direction with respect to the gas inlet 15 located at the central portion of the non-occupant side panel 13.

[0021] Preferably, the other end portion 21b of the other connecting member 21 is located on the occupant side, i.e., the rear side, with respect to the rim portion 6 of the steering wheel 3 in the inflated state of the airbag main body portion 10. More specifically, the other end portion 21b of the other connecting member 21 is located on the rear side with respect to a virtual plane P extending in the vertical and horizontal directions passing through the center of the cross-section at the lowermost part, which is the central part of the steering wheel 3, in the inflated state of the airbag main body portion 10, and more preferably, it is located on the rear side of the vertical projection of the cross-section at the lowermost part of the steering wheel 3.

[0022] Then, after inserting the inflator 2 into the gas inlet 15 of the airbag 1 and attaching it via the attachment member, it is folded into a predetermined shape, and together with the inflator 2, it is assembled to the case body etc. of the airbag device via the attachment member, and the airbag device is assembled to a predetermined installation position such as the boss portion 5 of the steering wheel 3 inside the vehicle.

[0023] When a collision impact is applied to a vehicle equipped with an airbag device including the airbag 1, the inflator 2 is activated by a control device (not shown), and gas is rapidly injected into the folded airbag main body portion 10 through the gas inlet 15 by the inflator 2. Then, the airbag main body portion 10 expands, and due to the expansion pressure, a part of the case body of the airbag device is broken to form a protruding opening, and it bulges out through this protruding opening, and as shown in Fig. 2(a), it expands in a circular shape in front of the occupant A and between the occupant A and the steering wheel 3. Note that the occupant A is shown by a dummy such as AM50. At this time, the airbag main body portion 10 is positioned such that the central portions of the occupant side panel 12 and the non-occupant side panel 13 overlap with respect to the axis S of the steering shaft, and it expands in a planar manner in a direction intersecting or orthogonal to the axis S of the steering shaft to cover the range including the rim portion 6 of the steering wheel 3.

[0024] In this expanded state, the first connecting member 20 and the other connecting member 21 are stretched by the gas pressure. The first connecting member 20 is positioned above the axis S of the steering shaft and is inclined approximately along the axis S of the steering shaft, while the other connecting member 21 is positioned below the axis S of the steering shaft and is inclined so as to gradually approach the first end 21a from the other end 21b. In other words, the other connecting member 21 is positioned away from the center of the anti-occupant side panel 13 and is asymmetrical to the other end 20b of the first connecting member 20. As a result, the angle of inclination of the other connecting member 21 with respect to the axis S of the steering shaft is larger and the angle is more upright than that of the first connecting member 20. Furthermore, the other end 21b of the other connecting member 21 is located on the occupant A side of the lower part of the rim 6 of the steering wheel 3.

[0025] Then, as shown in Figure 2(b), as occupant A is thrown forward, the occupant A strikes the occupant-side panel 12 of the inflated and deployed airbag body 10, and the occupant-side panel 12 receives the occupant-side panel 12. As the occupant-side panel 12 is pushed relatively forward by occupant A, one connecting member 20, which is inclined at an angle close to the horizontal, slackens as one end 20a moves forward, while the other connecting member 21, which is inclined at an angle closer to the vertical, does not slacken easily even if one end 21a moves forward. Starting from the other end 21b, which is located on the occupant A side of the lower part of the rim 6 of the handle 3, it remains constantly extended without slackening depending on the angle of incidence of occupant A. Therefore, as shown in Figure 2(c), even if occupant A moves further forward, the inflatable portions 10a and 10b of the airbag body 10 remain in place at the upper part of the airbag body 10, i.e., the portion facing the missing area 8 of the rim portion 6 of the handle 3 and restraining occupant A's head H, and at the lower part of the airbag body 10, i.e., the portion facing the rim portion 6 of the handle 3 and restraining occupant A's chest C, respectively. This prevents the airbag body 10 from bottoming out against the rim portion 6 of the handle 3 and provides appropriate reaction force to stably and appropriately protect occupant A. In other words, it suppresses the upward and forward lifting (slipping, slipping) of the airbag body 10 relative to the handle 3, and allows the airbag body 10 to remain between occupant A and the handle 3.

[0026] In this airbag 1, which includes one and another connecting members 20, 21 connecting the occupant-side panel 12 and the non-occupant-side panel 13 of the airbag body 10, one end 20a of the one connecting member 20 and one end 21a of the other connecting member 21 are positioned symmetrically with respect to the central part of the occupant-side panel 12, the other end 20b of the one connecting member 20 is positioned near the gas inlet 15 in the central part of the non-occupant-side panel 13, and the other end 21b of the other connecting member 21 is positioned away from the gas inlet 15 of the non-occupant-side panel 13. As a result, slack in the other connecting member 21 due to the angle of incidence of the occupant when the occupant is restrained can be suppressed, thereby allowing the airbag 1 to be secured between the occupant and the steering wheel 3, suppressing impact to the occupant's chest and head, and preventing secondary impacts to surrounding parts of the head and effects on the neck caused by an increase in the backward tilt moment. Therefore, since the rim portion 6 of the airbag body 10 does not serve as a reaction plate, the occupant can be appropriately and stably protected even when applied to a handle 3 that has a missing area 8 on the upper part of the rim portion 6.

[0027] Moreover, since this can be easily achieved without using special components, simply by changing the position of the other end 21b of the other connecting member 21 relative to the handle 13 on the opposite side of the occupant, it is possible to construct the airbag 1 simply and inexpensively.

[0028] Furthermore, when the airbag body 10 is inflated, the other end 21b of the other connecting member 21 is positioned closer to the occupant than the rim portion 6 of the handle 3. Therefore, even when an occupant enters the vehicle, the lower part of the airbag body 10 remains between the occupant and the rim portion 6, starting from the position of the other end 21b of the other connecting member 21. This ensures that the upward and forward lift of the airbag body 10 is more reliably suppressed.

[0029] Furthermore, when the airbag body 10 is inflated, the other end 20b of one connecting member 20 is located in the center of the missing area 8 of the rim portion 6 of the handle 3. Therefore, the one connecting member 20 continues to slacken after the occupant comes into contact with the occupant-side panel 12, so the reaction force on the occupant does not become excessive.

[0030] In particular, in this embodiment, since the other connecting member 21 is located below the first connecting member 20, the tension of the other connecting member 21 restricts the lifting of the airbag body 10, and the airbag body 10 can be held in an appropriate position relative to the handle 3.

[0031] In one embodiment, the handle 3 is not limited to an irregularly shaped handle having a missing area 8, but can also be a general steering wheel having an annular rim portion 6. [Industrial applicability]

[0032] The present invention can be suitably used, for example, as an airbag for the driver's seat of an automobile. [Explanation of symbols]

[0033] 1 Airbag 3 handles 6. Rim portion which is the gripping part 8. Missing range 10. Airbag main unit 12. Crew side panel 13. Anti-crew side panel 15 Gas inlet 20 One connecting member 21 Other connecting members A crew member

Claims

1. An airbag positioned on the steering wheel of a vehicle having a grip portion for the occupant to grasp, An airbag body having an occupant-side panel located on the occupant side when inflated, and an anti-occupant-side panel located on the steering wheel side when inflated, having a gas inlet in the center for introducing gas, The airbag body includes one and another connecting members that connect the occupant-side panel and the opposite occupant-side panel, One end of the first connecting member and one end of the other connecting member are symmetrically positioned with respect to the center of the occupant-side panel, the other end of the first connecting member is near the gas inlet of the opposite occupant-side panel, and the other end of the other connecting member is located away from the gas inlet of the opposite occupant-side panel. An airbag characterized by the following features.

2. When the airbag unit is inflated, the other end of the other connecting member is positioned closer to the occupant than the handle grip. The airbag according to claim 1, characterized in that it is a feature of the airbag.

3. The gripping portion has a missing area in the circumferential direction. When the airbag body is inflated, the other end of one connecting member is located in the center of the missing area. The airbag according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it is as described above.

4. The other connecting member is positioned below the first connecting member. The airbag according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it is as described above.

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