Occupant protection devices

Abstract

To provide an occupant protection device capable of suppressing the positional deviation of a conduit part in a connection part connected to a pipe part when inflation gas is generated.SOLUTION: An occupant protection device S for protecting an occupant MP seated in a seat 1, includes: a seat belt 7; an air bag 25 which is arranged in the region of a lap belt 10 for restraining an occupant lumbar part when worn in the seat belt 7, and which is inflated so as to be capable of protecting an upper half body MU of the occupant MP; an inflator body 18 for generating inflation gas; and a pipe part 19 which extends from the inflator body 18 and guides the inflation gas into the air bag 25. The air bag 25 includes a conduit part 40 connected to the pipe part 19. The conduit part 40 includes: a cylindrical conduit part body 41 which is fitted to a tip 19c of the pipe part 19 from outside and tightened to be fixed; and an extension piece 80 extending outward from the conduit part body 41. The extension piece 80 is fixed to a seat frame 4 supporting the seat 1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an occupant protection device for protecting an occupant seated in a seat. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been a passenger protection device that includes an airbag disposed in the area of ​​the lap belt that restrains the waist of the passenger when the seat belt is fastened (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this passenger protection device, the airbag is inflated upward and forward from the lap belt as inflation gas is generated, and when inflation is complete, the upper half of the passenger's body is protected. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2020-66425 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the above passenger protection device, the pipe portion that guides the inflation gas into the airbag and the conduit portion on the airbag side are connected and fixed using a fastening member such as a clamp, and the position of the conduit portion at the connection portion with the pipe portion determines the deployment and inflation position of the airbag body. However, if the position of the conduit portion shifts in the direction of the propulsive force caused by the gas pressure when the inflation gas is generated, the deployment and inflation position of the airbag body may also be affected.

[0005] The present invention is devised to solve such problems, and aims to provide an occupant protection device that can suppress misalignment of the conduit portion at the connection portion with the pipe portion when inflation gas is generated. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The occupant protection device according to the present invention is an occupant protection device for protecting an occupant seated in a seat, comprising a seat belt, an airbag that is disposed in an area of ​​a lap belt of the seat belt that restrains the waist of the occupant when the seat belt is worn and that inflates to protect the upper body of the occupant, an inflator body that generates inflation gas, and a pipe portion that extends from the inflator body and guides the inflation gas into the airbag, The airbag comprises: Extending to the side of the sheet The pipe portion is connected Inflate the bag with inflation gas A conduit portion is provided. The conduit portion is fitted onto the tip of the pipe portion from the outside. The end of the pipe is fastened by a clamp as a fastening member. The seat cover is characterized in that it comprises a tubular conduit body that is fastened and fixed, and an extension piece that extends outward from the conduit body, the extension piece being fixed to a seat frame that supports the seat.

[0007] According to the passenger protection device of the present invention, even if a propulsive force due to the gas pressure of the inflation gas acts on the conduit, a reaction force in the opposite direction acts on the conduit via the extension piece fixed to the seat frame, thereby restricting the movement of the conduit, thereby making it possible to suppress displacement of the conduit at the connection part with the pipe when inflation gas is generated.

[0008] Here, the extension pieces may be provided on both sides of the flow path of the inflation gas in the conduit body, thereby more effectively preventing the conduit from shifting out of position. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of a seat equipped with an occupant protection device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a side view of the seat of FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a front view of the seat of FIG. 1, showing the seat belt fastened. [Figure 4]FIG. 1A is a diagram showing the connection between the pipe section and the conduit section together with its surroundings, and FIG. 1B is a diagram showing the connection between the pipe section and the inflator main body together with its surroundings. [Diagram 5] 2 is a schematic perspective view showing a state in which an airbag used in the occupant protection device of FIG. 1 is inflated by itself. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a schematic vertical cross-sectional view of the airbag of FIG. 5. [Figure 7] FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a base fabric constituting the airbag of FIG. 5. [Figure 8] 1 is a front view of a seat in a state where an airbag has completed inflation in an occupant protection device according to an embodiment; [Figure 9] 1 is a side view of a seat in a state where an airbag has completed inflation in the occupant protection device according to an embodiment. [Figure 10] 1 is a side view showing a state in which an occupant is restrained by an airbag that has completed inflation in the occupant protection device according to the embodiment; [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a diagram of a modified example in which a plurality of extension pieces are provided. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in Figs. 1 to 3, an occupant protection device S of the embodiment is mounted on a vehicle seat 1 and includes a seat belt 7, an airbag 25, and an inflator 17. The seat 1 includes a backrest 2 and a seat portion 3.

[0011] The seat belt 7 is configured to include a belt body 8 for restraining an occupant MP seated on the seat 1, a tongue plate 12 attached to the belt body 8, and a buckle 13 for connecting the tongue plate 12. One end of the belt body 8 is fastened to a winding shaft of a retractor (not shown) arranged in the backrest 2, and the other end is fastened to an anchor member 14 (see Figs. 1 and 2) arranged to the left of the rear end 3b of the seat part 3 of the seat 1. In detail, the belt body 8 is arranged so as to be exposed to the outside from the upper left edge side of the backrest 2, and in the case of the embodiment, when the occupant is not seated, the lap belt 10 for disposing the airbag 25 is exposed to the front surface of the backrest 2 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The belt body 8 has a lap belt 10 and a shoulder belt 9 stored in the backrest 2, and when an occupant is seated, the lap belt 10, which is disposed substantially along the left-right direction between the anchor member 14 and the buckle 13, restrains the lower body MD (waist) of the occupant MP, and the shoulder belt 9, which extends from the upper left edge side of the backrest 2 and is disposed obliquely to the buckle 13, restrains the upper body MU (from the shoulders to the chest MB and the head MH) of the occupant MP (see FIG. 3). Note that in the seat belt 7, a retractor (not shown) disposed in the backrest 2 has a pretensioner mechanism.

[0012] The inflator 17 supplies inflation gas to the airbag 25. In this embodiment, the inflator 17 includes an inflator body 18 that generates inflation gas, and a pipe portion 19 that extends from the inflator body 18 and guides the inflation gas into the airbag 25. The inflator 17 in this embodiment is set to start operating later than the pretensioner mechanism of the seatbelt 7 in order to regulate the withdrawal of the belt body 8 of the seatbelt 7 accompanying the inflation of the airbag 25. Specifically, the inflator 17 is set to operate 5 ms after the operation of the pretensioner mechanism of the seatbelt 7.

[0013] The inflator 17 is attached to a seat frame 4 that supports the seat 1 (more specifically, the seat portion 3) at a position lower than the seat surface 3a of the seat 1. For example, even if the seat 1 is slid significantly back and forth or rotated, the inflator 17 can move together with the seat 1.

[0014] 4, the inflator body 18 is a generally cylindrical cylinder type, and is provided on the back side below the seat portion 3 with its axial direction generally aligned along the left-right direction. In this case, a gas discharge port 61 provided on one end side of the inflator body 18 in the axial direction faces leftward of the seat 1.

[0015] 4B, the inflator body 18 is fixed to the seat frame 4 at two axially spaced apart locations using fixing members 65. As the fixing member 65, a bolted clamp including a diameter-reducible ring-shaped clamp 66 and a bolt 68 protruding radially outward from the outer circumferential surface of the clamp 66 is used.

[0016] The clamp 66 is made of sheet metal, and is firmly wrapped around the inflator body 18 by contracting in diameter and deforming while attached to the outer circumferential surface of the inflator body 18. In this way, the fixing member 65 including the clamp 66 is attached to the inflator body 18.

[0017] On the other hand, the mounting plate 70 of the seat frame 4 to which the inflator body 18 is fixed has a flat first mounting surface 71 extending in the left-right direction, and has through mounting holes 72 drilled therein spaced apart in the left-right direction (see B in FIG. 4). In this embodiment, the inflator body 18 is fixed to the mounting plate 70 of the seat frame 4 by inserting the bolt 68 of the fixing member 65 into the mounting hole 72 and screwing a nut 75 into the male thread of the bolt 68 from the tip side of the bolt 68 so as to sandwich the mounting plate 70.

[0018] The pipe portion 19 is a metal tube bent into a substantially L-shape, one end 19a of which is connected to the gas discharge port 61 of the inflator body 18 (see B in FIG. 4). The end 19a on the side connected to the gas discharge port 61 is made into an enlarged diameter portion, which is crimped while fitted onto the gas discharge port 61 of the inflator body 18 to form a crimped joint 76. At the crimped joint 76, a part of the pipe portion 19 fits into an annular recessed groove 62 formed at the base of the gas discharge port 61, thereby connecting the end 19a of the pipe portion 19 to the inflator body 18.

[0019] The pipe section 19 connected to the inflator main body 18 has an end 19a extending horizontally, and then bent upward and forward at a bent section 19b as shown in A of Fig. 4. A tip 19c is disposed at the end of the pipe section 19 that extends upward and forward close to the seat frame 4. This tip 19c is configured to be connected to a conduit section 40 of the airbag 25, which will be described later, by using a clamp 20.

[0020] The airbag 25 is folded into a long shape and arranged in the area of ​​the lap belt 10 so as to be overlapped on the upper surface side of the lap belt 10 when the seat belt 7 is worn (see FIG. 3). That is, in the unworn state as shown in FIG. 1, the airbag 25 is arranged on the rear side (the backrest 2 side) of the lap belt 10. In the case of the embodiment, the airbag 25 and the lap belt 10 are covered and integrated with each other by a cover 22 that can be broken when the airbag 25 is deployed and inflated, as shown in FIG. That is, in the embodiment, the gap between the lap belt 10 and the cover 22 forms a storage portion for storing the airbag 25.

[0021] As shown in Figures 5 and 6, the airbag 25 comprises a bag body 26, a conduit portion 40 connected to the inflator 17 to allow inflation gas to flow into the bag body 26, and a belt attachment portion 47 through which the lap belt 10 is inserted.

[0022] The bag body 26 has an outer shape at the time of completion of inflation that is a substantially triangular prism with the axial direction substantially aligned with the left-right direction. More specifically, the bag body 26 is configured so that the shape at the time of completion of inflation when viewed from the left and right sides is a substantially right-angled triangle with a hypotenuse at the front, and the shape at the time of completion of inflation when viewed from the front-rear direction is a substantially rectangular shape that is wider in the vertical direction (see Figs. 8 and 9). The bag body 26 includes a front wall portion 27 disposed at the front side away from the occupant MP at the time of completion of inflation, a rear upper wall portion 28 and a rear lower wall portion 29 disposed on the occupant MP side at the time of completion of inflation, and a left wall portion 30 and a right wall portion 31 disposed opposite each other in the left-right direction at the time of completion of inflation. The bag body 26 has a communication hole 33 that communicates with the conduit portion 40 on the lower surface side of the rear end 29a of the rear lower wall portion 29, and is connected to the conduit portion 40 at the peripheral portion of the communication hole 33. In the case of the embodiment, the communication holes 33 are circularly opened and arranged side by side in two on the left and right sides so as to be substantially symmetrical on both sides of the left and right center of the bag body 26. In addition, vent holes 34, 34 for discharging excess inflation gas are formed near the upper and lower centers on both left and right edge sides of the front wall portion 27. In the bag body 26 of the embodiment, the rear lower wall portion 29 forms a leg contact surface 36 that can contact the upper surface of the legs (thighs) of the occupant MP when inflation is complete, and the rear upper wall portion 28 forms an upper body restraint surface 37 that is disposed in front of the occupant MP when inflation is complete and can restrain the occupant MP from the chest to the head. In the case of the embodiment, the rear upper wall portion 28 and the rear lower wall portion 29 are configured such that the outer shape of the bag body 26 in the fully inflated state is substantially rectangular with the longitudinal direction substantially aligned along the front-rear direction side or the vertical direction side, respectively, and the width dimensions of the longitudinal side are made equal as shown in FIG. 6. The rear upper wall portion 28 is configured so that an upper end 28a is positioned in front of the head MH of the occupant when the bag body is fully inflated (see FIG. 9). The rear upper wall portion 28 and the rear lower wall portion 29 are configured to be disposed so as to be substantially perpendicular to each other in the cross-sectional shape of the bag body 26 when it is fully inflated (see FIG. 6).

[0023] Conduit 40 includes a cylindrical conduit main body 41 connected to pipe 19 of inflator 17, and an extension piece 80 extending outward from conduit main body 41 (see FIG. 4A and FIG. 7 for extension piece 80). Conduit main body 41 is configured such that tip 41b connected to bag body 26 is closed and base 41a is open so as to be connectable to pipe 19, and is configured to be disposed in the left-right direction so as to substantially follow lap belt 10 when airbag 25 is fully inflated. As shown in FIG. 5, the region on tip 41b of conduit main body 41 is disposed on the lower surface of bag body 26 when inflation is fully completed, and this region on tip 41b is made wider to serve as gas storage section 42 for temporarily storing inflation gas that has flowed inside.

[0024] The width of gas storage section 42 is set to be approximately twice the width of the portion of conduit body 41 on the base portion 41a side. The width of gas storage section 42 in the left-right direction is configured to be approximately the same as the width of the portion of bag body 26 on the rear lower edge side (near the portion where communication hole 33 is arranged) (see Figs. 5 and 7). Gas storage section 42 is formed with opening 42a corresponding to communication hole 33 formed in bag body 26. In the embodiment, conduit body 41 is formed into a cylindrical shape by joining the peripheries of upper wall section 43 and lower wall section 44, which have the same outer shape, and opening 42a is formed in the region of upper wall section 43. The periphery of opening 42a is joined (sewn) to the periphery of communication hole 33 over the entire periphery.

[0025] As shown in Fig. 4A, an extension piece 80 is provided on the base portion 41a side of the conduit main body 41, extending outward from the conduit main body 41. As shown in Fig. 7, the extension piece 80 is formed by connecting together portions 80a and 80b corresponding to the extension piece 80 provided on the two conduit panels 57, 58 constituting the conduit 40. The extension piece 80 has a generally triangular shape in a plan view, and an insertion hole 82 for inserting a fixing screw member 85 is formed near a corner portion spaced from the conduit main body 41.

[0026] 4A, a connection between the conduit 40 and the pipe 19 of the airbag 25 will be described. The tip 19c of the pipe 19 is an annular projection projecting radially outward, and in this embodiment, with the tip 19c inserted into the inside of a cylindrical conduit main body 41, a clamp 20 as a fastening member is reduced in diameter from the outside of the conduit main body 41, and the conduit 40 (more specifically, the conduit main body 41) is connected and fixed to the pipe 19. An extension piece 80 is provided on the base 41a side of the conduit main body 41 connected to the pipe 19, in the vicinity of the location of fixation by the clamp 20. As shown in the partially enlarged view in A of FIG. 4, a fixing screw member 85 is inserted into an insertion hole 82 of the extension piece 80, and the screw portion is screwed into a second mounting surface 73 of the mounting plate portion 70 of the seat frame 4 facing the extension piece 80, thereby fixing the extension piece 80 to the mounting plate portion 70 of the seat frame 4. At the connection portion between the conduit portion 40 and the pipe portion 19, the clamp 20, the tip end 19c of the pipe portion 19, and the fixing insertion hole 82 of the extension piece 80 are arranged in this order toward the outflow direction of the inflation gas (upper left direction in A of FIG. 4). In the embodiment configured in this manner, the movement of the conduit portion 40 at the connection portion with the pipe portion 19 is restricted by the extension piece 80 fixed to the seat frame 4, so that the displacement of the conduit portion 40 at the connection portion when the inflation gas is generated can be suppressed compared to an occupant protection device that does not virtually include the extension piece 80.

[0027] The belt attachment portion 47 is disposed on the lower surface side (lower wall portion 44 side) of the gas storage portion 41 area of ​​the conduit portion 40, and is sewn to the lower wall portion 44 in a generally cylindrical shape with both ends open so that the lap belt 10 can be inserted therethrough (see Figs. 5 and 6). The length of the belt attachment portion 47 is set to be slightly smaller than the width of the gas storage portion 41 in the left and right directions. In other words, the length of the belt attachment portion 47 in the direction along the lap belt 10 is set to be larger so that the bag body 26 does not rise excessively from the lap belt 10 when deployed and inflated.

[0028] 6 and 7, the airbag 25 of the embodiment is formed by joining the peripheral edges of a base fabric of a predetermined shape, and is composed of two occupant-side panels 50 and a front panel 55 constituting the bag body 26, two conduit panels 57, 58 constituting the conduit 40, and a belt attachment panel 60 constituting the belt attachment section 47. The occupant-side panel 50, the front panel 55, the conduit panels 57, 58, and the belt attachment panel 60 are each formed from flexible woven fabric made of polyester yarn, polyamide yarn, or the like.

[0029] The occupant-side panel 50 is disposed on the occupant MP side when inflation is complete and constitutes the area from the leg contact surface 36 to the upper body restraint surface 37, and mainly constitutes the area from the rear upper wall portion 28 to the rear lower wall portion 29 in the bag body 26 when inflation is complete. Specifically, the occupant-side panel 50 has a lower portion 52 that mainly constitutes the leg contact surface 36 (rear lower wall portion 29), and an upper portion 51 that mainly constitutes the upper body restraint surface (rear upper wall portion 28). In detail, the lower portion 52 constitutes the rear lower wall portion 29 and the rear lower area of ​​the left wall portion 30 and the right wall portion 31, and the upper portion 51 constitutes the rear upper wall portion 28 and the rear upper area of ​​the left wall portion 30 and the right wall portion 31, and both have a substantially hexagonal outer shape. The occupant side panel 50 has an outer shape such that the lower portion 52 and the upper portion 51 are connected along one side, and the lower portion 52 and the upper portion 51 are symmetrical with respect to this connecting portion 50a.

[0030] The front panel 55 mainly constitutes the front wall 27 of the bag body 26 when inflation is complete, and more specifically, constitutes the front wall 27 and the front regions of the left wall 30 and the right wall 31. The front panel 55 has a substantially hexagonal outer shape. Specifically, the outer shape of the front panel 55 is a hexagon that substantially matches the outer shape of the lower region 52 and the upper region 51 (see FIG. 7) in the occupant-side panel 50 in an open state so as to separate the remaining edges (front edges 51c, 52c) that connect the rear left edges 51a, 52a and the rear right edges 51b, 52b, which are located on the left and right sides of the connecting portion 50a, respectively.

[0031] The two conduit panels 57, 58 have the same outer shape as shown in Fig. 7, and respectively constitute the upper wall 43 and the lower wall 44 of the conduit 40. The belt attachment panel 60 has a generally rectangular outer shape, and is folded in half to form the belt attachment part 47 by joining the short side edges 60a, 60b to each other.

[0032] In the occupant protection device S of the embodiment, when the inflator 17 is activated while the device is mounted on the vehicle, the inflation gas discharged from the inflator 17 flows into the bag body 26 through the conduit 40, and the bag body 26 breaks the cover 22 and protrudes forward and upward from the lap belt 10, completing the inflation as shown in Figures 8 and 9. At this time, a propulsive force acts on the conduit 40 of the airbag 25 in the direction shown by the arrow in Figure 9, but since the conduit 40 is fixed to the pipe 19 and is fixed to the seat frame 4 via the extension piece 80, a reaction force acts from the pipe 19 and the seat frame 4 to suppress movement (displacement) of the conduit 40 at the connection portion with the pipe 19.

[0033] In the occupant protection device S of the embodiment, the airbag 25 (bag body 26) is shaped like a substantially triangular prism with its axial direction aligned substantially along the left-right direction when fully inflated, and is disposed in front of the upper body MU of the occupant MP with the leg contact surface 36 in contact with the upper surface of the leg MT. Therefore, even if the occupant MP moves the upper body MU significantly to approach the lower body MD when the airbag 25 is fully inflated, the leg contact surface 36 is supported by the leg MT over a wide area as shown in Fig. 10, so that the upper body MU of the occupant MP (from the chest MB to the head MH) is restrained from collapsing or being compressed, and the upper body MU of the occupant MP (from the chest MB to the head MH) can be appropriately restrained by the upper body restraining surface 37 disposed in opposition to the front of the upper body MU. Furthermore, in the embodiment of the occupant protection device S, the fully inflated shape of the airbag 25 (bag main body 26) is approximately triangular prism-shaped, so that even when the occupant MP is seated in a seat with the backrest inclined, the upper body MU can be appropriately restrained by the upper body restraint surface 37.

[0034] According to the embodiment of the occupant protection device S configured as described above, even if a propulsive force due to the gas pressure of the inflation gas acts on the conduit portion 40, a reaction force in the opposite direction acts on the conduit portion 40 via the extension piece 80 fixed to the seat frame 4, thereby restricting the movement of the conduit portion 40. This makes it possible to suppress displacement of the conduit portion 40 at the connection portion with the pipe portion 19 when inflation gas is generated.

[0035] In the above embodiment, one extension piece 80 is provided to be fixed to the seat frame 4, but the number and positions of the extension pieces 80 can be changed as appropriate. For example, as shown in Fig. 11, it is also possible to provide extension pieces 80 on both sides of the flow path of the inflation gas in the conduit main body 41, and to configure each extension piece 80 to be fixed to the mounting plate 70 of the seat frame 4. In this way, it is possible to more effectively prevent the position of the conduit 40 at the connection portion with the pipe 19 from shifting.

[0036] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, this is merely an example. The present invention can be embodied in various modified forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0037] 1...seat, 2...backrest portion, 4...seat frame, 7...seat belt, 10...lap belt, 18...inflator main body, 19...pipe portion, 19c...tip, 25...airbag, 40...duct portion, 41...duct portion main body, 80...extension piece, MP...occupant, S...occupant protection device.

Claims

1. An occupant protection device for protecting an occupant seated in a seat, Seat belt and an airbag disposed in a region of a lap belt that restrains a waist of the occupant when the seat belt is fastened, the airbag inflating to protect an upper body of the occupant; An inflator body that generates inflation gas; a pipe portion extending from the inflator body to guide the inflation gas into the airbag; The configuration has the airbag has a conduit portion extending toward a side surface of the seat and connected to the pipe portion to allow inflation gas to flow into the bag body, The conduit portion comprises a cylindrical conduit main body that fits into the tip of the pipe portion from the outside and is fastened and fixed to the tip of the pipe portion by a clamp as a fastening member, and an extension piece that extends outward from the conduit main body, and the extension piece is fixed to a seat frame that supports the seat, characterized in that the conduit portion comprises a cylindrical conduit main body that fits into the tip of the pipe portion from the outside and is fastened and fixed to the tip of the pipe portion by a clamp that serves as a fastening member, and an extension piece that extends outward from the conduit main body,

2. An occupant protection device as described in claim 1, characterized in that at the connection portion between the conduit portion and the pipe portion, the clamp, the tip of the pipe portion, and an insertion hole for fixing the extension piece are arranged in that order toward the outflow direction of the inflation gas.

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