Occupant protection devices

Abstract

To provide an occupant protection device capable of securely protecting an occupant even in a vehicle of a type having no door as a simple structure.SOLUTION: An occupant protection device S that can protect an occupant seated on a seat 1 at the time of action of external force directing from a side to an inner side of a vehicle includes: an occupant receiving part 14 capable of being arranged in a receiving position P2 in which a portion to be protected in the occupant can be received from a standby position P1; an external force receiving part 20A arranged at an external force action side in the seat and capable of receiving external force; and movement mechanisms 12, 15 capable of moving the occupant receiving part from the standby position to the receiving position at the time of receiving external force by the external force receiving part. The occupant receiving part is formed from a material with shape holding property, is arranged at a lateral face side of the seat in the standby position, and is arranged in the receiving position by the movement mechanisms at the time of receiving external force by the external force receiving part so as to cover the side of the portion to be protected while closing a space between a seat part and a backrest part in the seat.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an occupant protection device capable of protecting an occupant seated in a seat when an external force is applied during a vehicle collision. [Background technology]

[0002] Typically, an airbag device is used to protect the occupant seated in the vehicle seat by inflating an airbag to protect the occupant's body parts that need to be protected. Recently, there are also vehicles that are single-seater, do not have doors, and have left and right sides open to the occupant (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP2014-83858A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In this way, in the case of a vehicle without doors, it is difficult to adequately protect the sides of the occupant by simply inflating the airbag. Also, in a typical airbag device, the airbag is inflated using an inflator, so there is room for improvement in terms of protecting the occupant in a simpler configuration.

[0005] The present invention is devised to solve the above-mentioned problems, and has an object to provide an occupant protection device that has a simple configuration and can adequately protect occupants even in a vehicle that does not have doors. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present invention relates to an occupant protection device that can protect an occupant seated in a seat when an external force acts inwardly from the side of a vehicle, and Located to the side of the occupant, an occupant receiving portion that can be arranged from a standby position to a receiving position where the occupant's body part to be protected can be received; an external force receiving portion disposed on an external force acting side of the seat and capable of receiving an external force; a moving mechanism that can move the occupant receiving portion from a standby position to a receiving position when the external force receiving portion receives an external force; , The occupant receiving portion is formed from a material having shape retention properties, and is positioned on the side of the seat in the standby position. When an external force is received by the external force receiving portion, the moving mechanism moves the occupant receiving portion to the receiving position so as to close the space between the seat portion and the backrest portion of the seat and cover the side of the area to be protected.

[0007] In the passenger protection device of the present invention, when an external force acts from the side of the vehicle, the occupant receiving portion is moved to a receiving position so as to cover the side of the part of the occupant to be protected by utilizing the external force, and the occupant receiving portion is formed of a material having shape retention. Therefore, even if the passenger protection device of the present invention is installed in a type of vehicle that does not have a door that covers the side of the occupant, the side of the occupant can be quickly covered by the occupant receiving portion, and the part of the occupant to be protected can be accurately restrained by the occupant receiving portion. As a result, the occupant can be accurately prevented from moving toward the side where the external force is applied. Furthermore, in the passenger protection device of the present invention, the external force acting from the side of the vehicle is directly received by the external force receiving portion, and the external force acting on the external force receiving portion is utilized to move the occupant receiving portion from the standby position to the receiving position by the moving mechanism, so that there is no need to provide a separate drive source, and the device can be manufactured inexpensively as a simple configuration.

[0008] Therefore, the passenger protection device of the present invention has a simple configuration and can adequately protect passengers even in a vehicle that does not have doors.

[0009] Furthermore, in the occupant protection device of the present invention, if it is configured to include a protective wall portion arranged to cover the side of the occupant receiving portion where the external force is applied at the receiving position, this can prevent the occupant receiving portion from coming into direct contact with the vehicle or the like that applies the external force, thereby making it possible for the occupant receiving portion to more accurately restrain the area to be protected, which is preferable.

[0010] Furthermore, in the passenger protection device having the above configuration, the four-joint link mechanism is formed by connecting the front wall portion, the rear wall portion, the inner wall portion, and the outer wall portion to each other by a rotating pair, the front wall portion, the rear wall portion, the inner wall portion, and the outer wall portion each having a substantially rectangular tubular shape with an axial direction substantially aligned along the vertical direction, The rear wall portion is provided as a fixed link fixed to the seat side, The inner wall portion constitutes an occupant receiving portion, The outer wall portion constitutes a protective wall portion, The front wall portion, the rear wall portion, the inner wall portion, and the outer wall portion are arranged on the side of the seat in a substantially flat plate shape in which the front outer turning pair connecting the outer wall portion and the front wall portion faces outward in the standby position, The area near the front outer pair constitutes the external force receiving part, It is preferable that the outer wall portion and the front wall portion form a movement mechanism.

[0011] With the above-mentioned configuration of the passenger protection device, the front wall, rear wall, inner wall, and outer wall, which are substantially rectangular tubular in shape at the receiving position, are arranged on the side of the seat as mutually overlapping flat plates at the standby position, and therefore the passenger protection device can be compactly mounted. In addition, with the above-mentioned configuration, the portion near the front outer circumferential pair, which is located on the outermost side at the standby position, constitutes the external force receiving portion, and the outer wall and the front wall constitute the moving mechanism, so that when an external force acts on the portion near the front outer circumferential pair, the front wall and the outer wall receive the external force and move while rising from the flat deployed state, and the inner wall also moves with the movement of the front wall and the outer wall, so that the passenger protection device can be moved from the standby position to the receiving position without the need for a separate drive source, and the configuration can be made even simpler.

[0012] Furthermore, in the occupant protection device configured as described above, if an airbag filled with air is disposed between the occupant receiving portion and the protective wall portion at the receiving position, even if the protective wall portion comes into contact with a vehicle or the like applying an external force, the reaction force from the airbag, which is filled with air and inflated, will prevent the airbag from approaching the occupant receiving portion, thereby preventing the vehicle or the like applying an external force from further intrusion. Even if the occupant attempts to move toward the protective wall portion (outward) due to the reaction force, the occupant receiving portion, which is arranged to cover the sides of the area to be protected, will be able to restrain the area to be protected, and movement of the occupant toward the protective wall portion can be even more accurately prevented. Furthermore, when installing an airbag, if the airbag has a peripheral wall connected to the occupant receiving portion and the protective wall portion and has an intake hole that allows air to flow into the interior when the occupant receiving portion moves, the airbag will inflate when the occupant receiving portion moves by allowing air to flow into the interior through the intake hole, eliminating the need for a gas supply member such as an inflator for inflating the airbag, and the airbag can be manufactured inexpensively as it is a simple configuration even when the airbag is installed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic side view of a vehicle on which an occupant protection device according to an embodiment of the present invention is mounted. [Diagram 2] 1 is a schematic front view of a vehicle on which an occupant protection device according to an embodiment of the present invention is mounted; [Diagram 3] 3A and 3B are side views of the occupant protection device according to the embodiment, illustrating a standby position and a receiving position. [Figure 4] 3 is a plan view of the passenger protection device according to the embodiment, showing a standby position and a receiving position; FIG. [Diagram 5] 3A and 3B are front views of the occupant protection device according to the embodiment, illustrating a standby position and a receiving position. [Figure 6] 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the occupant protection device according to the embodiment, which corresponds to a portion taken along line VI-VI in FIG. 5. [Figure 7] 7 is a schematic end view of the occupant protection device according to the embodiment, corresponding to a portion VII-VII in FIG. 5. [Figure 8] 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a standby position and a receiving position of a protection main body in the occupant protection device according to the embodiment; FIG. [Figure 9] 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the occupant protection device according to the embodiment, which corresponds to a portion taken along line IX-IX in FIG. 5. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a schematic bottom view of the occupant protection device according to the embodiment in a receiving position. [Figure 11] 2 is a schematic bottom view showing the vicinity of an intake hole in the airbag used in the occupant protection device of the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line XII-XII in FIG. [Figure 13] 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an open and closed state of an air intake hole. FIG. [Figure 14] 1 is a schematic vertical cross-sectional view of an occupant protection device according to an embodiment in a receiving position; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, an occupant protection device S of the embodiment is mounted on a one-seater vehicle V. As shown in Figure 1, the vehicle V does not have a door, and when a driver MD as an occupant is seated in a seat 1, the left and right sides of the driver MD are open.

[0015] The seat 1 is configured to include a seat portion 3 and a backrest portion 2. Specifically, in the seat 1, the backrest portion 2 is not directly connected to the seat portion 3, but is connected to the seat portion 3 by using connecting pipes 5L, 5R arranged to extend downward so as to substantially follow the backrest portion 2 on both the left and right edge sides (see FIG. 2). In detail, the backrest portion 2 is configured such that approximately the lower half of each of the left edge side area and the right edge side area is cut out, and the connecting pipes 5L, 5R are arranged in the cut-out areas of the backrest portion 2 so as to substantially follow the backrest portion 2 in the up-down direction (more specifically, slightly inclined with respect to the vertical direction so that the lower end side is located forward, see FIG. 1). When the driver MD is seated, the connecting pipes 5L, 5R are arranged on the rear left side and rear right side of the driver MD from the waist to the back.

[0016] The occupant protection device S is disposed to the side of the driver MD as an occupant, and in this embodiment, is disposed to the right of the waist MW of the driver MD so as to be attached to the right-side connecting pipe 5R (see Figs. 1 and 2). As shown in Figs. 3 to 7, the occupant protection device S includes a protection main body 10 as a four-joint link mechanism, an armrest 30, and an inner airbag 35A and an outer airbag 35B disposed within the protection main body 10.

[0017] The protection body 10 as a four-joint link mechanism is configured to have a substantially rectangular tubular shape with the axial direction substantially aligned along the up-down direction (vertical direction), and includes a front wall 12, a rear wall 13, an inner wall 14, and an outer wall 15. The front wall 12, the rear wall 13, the inner wall 14, and the outer wall 15 are mutually connected by turning pairs 20A, 20B, 20C, and 20D. The protection body 10 is configured to move while deforming from a standby position P1 (standby state) to a receiving position P2 (receiving state) when an external force T acts from the side (right side) of the vehicle V toward the inside (left side), and the outer shape at the receiving position P2 is a substantially rectangular tubular shape with the axial direction substantially aligned along the up-down direction (vertical direction) (see B in Fig. 3, B in Fig. 4, and B in Fig. 5). Specifically, the protection main body 10 is configured to have an outer shape at the receiving position P2 as a substantially rectangular tube with a wide front-rear direction and an axial direction substantially along the vertical direction so as to cover a wide side (right side) of the waist MW of the driver MD as a part to be protected by closing the space near the boundary between the seat part 3 and the backrest part 2 of the seat 1. In the protection main body 10 of the embodiment, in the state of the receiving position P2 (movement completion state), the inner wall part 14 and the outer wall part 15 facing each other on the left-right side are arranged substantially parallel to each other and substantially along the front-rear direction, and the front wall part 12 and the rear wall part 13 facing each other on the front-rear direction are arranged substantially along the left-right direction so as to be substantially perpendicular to the inner wall part 14 and the outer wall part 15 (see B and 9 in Fig. 4, B and 8). The protective main body 10 (front wall 12, rear wall 13, inner wall 14, and outer wall 15) is formed from a material having shape-retaining properties, and in this embodiment, is a plate-shaped body made of synthetic resin (specifically, soft synthetic resin such as polystyrene foam).

[0018] In the protection main body 10, the rear wall 13 is configured to be attached to the connecting pipe 5R. Specifically, the mounting portions 25, 25, which can be attached to the connecting pipe 5R by inserting the connecting pipe 5R, are formed on the upper and lower ends of the inner end of the rear wall 13 so as to extend rearward from the rear wall 13. That is, in the protection main body 10 of the embodiment, the rear wall 13 is disposed as a fixed link fixed to the seat 1. Also, in the protection main body 10, at the receiving position P2, the inner wall 14 arranged on the inside, which is the driver MD side, constitutes an occupant receiving portion that covers the side (right side) of the waist MW as the part to be protected, and the outer wall 15 arranged to cover the outside (external force acting side) of the inner wall 14 constitutes a protection wall portion. Both the inner wall portion 14 constituting the occupant receiving portion and the outer wall portion 15 constituting the protective wall portion move while being rotated by about 90° when moving from the standby position P1 to the receiving position P2. The front outer joint 20A, the front inner joint 20B, the rear outer joint 20C, and the rear inner joint 20D which respectively connect the front wall portion 12, the rear wall portion 13, the inner wall portion 14, and the outer wall portion 15 to each other are disposed on the upper end 10a side and the lower end 10b side of the protective main body portion 10.

[0019] When in a standby state in which it is disposed at standby position P1, the protective main body 10 is configured to be approximately flat, with the front wall 12, rear wall 13, inner wall 14, and outer wall 15 overlapping each other, and extending approximately along the left-right direction, and is disposed on the right side of the seat 1 (see A in Figures 3, A in Figures 4, and A in Figure 5). Specifically, in the standby position P1, the protective main body 10 is positioned in series outside (to the right) of the rear wall 13, with the rear side 15a of the outer wall 15 abutting against the outer side 13a of the rear wall 13, and the inner side 12a of the front wall 12 abutting against the front side 14a of the inner wall 14 in the receiving state, so that the inner wall 14 and the front wall 12 are stacked in series in front of the rear wall 13 and outer wall 15, and the front outer pair 20A connecting the outer wall 15 and the front wall 12 is facing outward (to the right) (see Figure 6). That is, in the standby position P1, the outer side surface 13a of the rear wall portion 13, the rear side surface 15a of the outer wall portion 15, the front side surface 14a of the inner wall portion 14, and the inner side surface 12a of the front wall portion 12 are in contact with each other to form stopper surfaces capable of maintaining a flat state (standby state). In the protection main body portion 10 of the embodiment, in the standby position P1, a portion near the front outer pair 20A located on the outermost side (the side on which the external force acts on the seat 1, which is the right side in the case of the embodiment) forms an external force receiving portion. In detail, in the protection main body portion 10 of the embodiment, in the standby position P1, the front wall portion 12 is configured so that the outer side surface 12b is positioned outward from the front side surface 15b in the receiving state of the outer wall portion 15 (see Figs. 6 and 8), and the outer side surface 12b of the front wall portion 12 forms the external force receiving portion. In the protection main body 10 of the embodiment, the front wall 12 and the outer wall 15 form a movement mechanism.

[0020] At the receiving position P2, the protective main body 10 is formed into a rectangular tube shape by abutting the rear side surface 14b of the inner wall portion 14 against the front inner edge 13b of the rear wall portion 13 and abutting the front side surface 15b of the outer wall portion 15 against the rear outer edge 12c of the front wall portion 12 (see FIG. 9). At the receiving position P2, the front inner edge 13b of the rear wall portion 13, the rear side surface 14b of the inner wall portion 14, and the rear outer edge 12c of the front wall portion 12 and the front side surface 15b of the outer wall portion 15 are abutted against each other, and each of them constitutes a stopper surface that can restrict further rotational movement and maintain the rectangular tube shape (receiving state). In the embodiment, magnets 24 (specifically, neodymium magnets) that can be attracted to each other are disposed on the mutually abutting front inner edge 13b side of the rear wall 13, the rear side 14b side of the inner wall 14, the rear outer edge 12c side of the front wall 12, and the front side 15b side of the outer wall 15 at the receiving position P2 so as to maintain the outer shape (rectangular tube shape) in the receiving state. In the embodiment, the magnets 24 are disposed on the upper end 10a side and the lower end 10b side of the protective main body 10 (see FIGS. 3 and 5).

[0021] In the embodiment of the protective main body 10, in the standby state arranged at standby position P1, when an external force T acts inward from the side of the vehicle V, the portion near the front outer pair 20A constituting the external force receiving portion (more specifically, the portion near the outer surface 12b of the front wall portion 12) is pushed inward by the external force T, and the outer wall portion 15 and front wall portion 12 constituting the moving mechanism move under the pressing force, and the inner wall portion 14 moves following suit, so that the inner wall portion 14, outer wall portion 15 and front wall portion 12, excluding the rear wall portion 13 constituting the fixed link, move from the standby position P1 and are positioned at the receiving position P2 so as to form an approximately square cylindrical shape (see Figure 8). Specifically, the front wall 12 moves inwardly and forwardly while maintaining a state in which it is generally aligned with the left-right direction, and the inner wall 14 and the outer wall 15 move so as to rotate by approximately 90° from a state in which it is generally aligned with the left-right direction to a state in which it is generally aligned with the front-rear direction. As described above, the protection main body 10 is maintained by the magnet 24 in a state in which it is arranged at the receiving position P2 (a state in which it is generally rectangular cylindrical).

[0022] An armrest portion 30 is disposed on the upper side of the protection main body 10. The armrest portion 30 is a long plate-like member extending approximately along the front-rear direction and is attached to the upper side of the front wall portion 12. Specifically, the armrest portion 30 is disposed so as to extend in the front-rear direction from the protection main body 10 in the standby state. As described above, the front wall portion 12 is configured to extend in the left-right direction in both the standby state and the receiving state of the protection main body 10 (see A and B in FIG. 4). In other words, when the protection main body 10 is deformed from the standby state to the receiving state (when moving from the standby position P1 to the receiving position P2), the armrest portion 30 is translated so as to move slightly forward and inward in accordance with the deformation of the protection main body 10. The armrest portion 30 is made of synthetic resin (specifically, soft synthetic resin such as polystyrene foam) like the protection main body 10.

[0023] The inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B arranged in the protection main body 10 are made of flexible sheets and are bag-shaped, and are arranged inside the protection main body 10, which is substantially rectangular tubular in shape, in the receiving state, by filling the inside with air (atmosphere in the case of the embodiment) to fill the space inside the protection main body 10. In the embodiment, the two inner airbags 35A and the outer airbag 35B are used, which inflate so as to overlap on the inside-outside direction (left-right direction) side inside the protection main body 10 at the receiving position P2. In the case of the embodiment, the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B are arranged so as to overlap on the front-rear direction side inside the protection main body 10 at the standby position P1 in a flat deployed state (see Figs. 6 and 7). Specifically, each of the inner airbags 35A and the outer airbags 35B has an outer shape in a flat deployed state that is substantially rectangular with a width dimension substantially equal to that of the rear wall portion 13 and the outer wall portion 15 (or the inner wall portion 14 and the front wall portion 12) arranged in series at the waiting position P1, and is arranged so as to cover substantially the entire inside of the protection main body portion 10 except for the arrangement areas of the front outer pair 20A, the front inner pair 20B, the rear outer pair 20C, and the rear inner pair 20D arranged on the upper end 10a side and the lower end 10b side (i.e., except for the upper end 10a side and the lower end 10b side) (see Figs. 5 to 7). Although detailed illustration is omitted, each of the inner airbags 35A and the outer airbags 35B has peripheral walls 37A and 37B connected (joined with an adhesive or the like) to the protection main body portion 10 side. Specifically, the inner airbag 35A has a separation side region 37a (specifically, a portion excluding both upper and lower ends of the separation side region 37a of the peripheral wall 37A) separated from the outer airbag 35B in the peripheral wall 37A connected to the inner wall portion 14 (occupant receiving portion) and the front wall portion 12, and the outer airbag 35B has a separation side region 37a (a portion of the vertical middle portion of the separation side region 37a of the peripheral wall 37B) separated from the inner airbag 35A in the peripheral wall 37B connected to the outer wall portion 15 (protective wall portion) and the rear wall portion 13.The inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B are provided at their lower ends when the protection main body 10 is transformed from the standby state to the receiving state (when the protection main body 10 moves from the standby position P1 to the receiving position P2). The air intake holes 40A and 40B are closed at the standby position P1 (see FIG. 5) and open at the time of transformation from the standby state to the receiving state (when the protection main body 10 moves from the standby position P1 to the receiving position P2) to allow the air to flow into the inside. The air intake holes 40A and 40B are disposed on the lower surface of the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B when the protection main body 10 is transformed from the standby state to the receiving state (when the protection main body 10 moves from the standby position P1 to the receiving position P2), near the intersection of the inner wall 14 and the front wall 12, and near the intersection of the outer wall 15 and the rear wall 13 (see FIG. 10).

[0024] In the embodiment, as shown in Figs. 11 and 12, each of the intake holes 40A, 40B includes a hole body 41A, 41B formed by opening in the peripheral wall 37A, 37B of the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B, and a check valve mechanism 43A, 43B capable of restricting the outflow of the inflation gas from the hole body 41A, 41B by closing the hole body 41A, 41B from the inner peripheral surface side after the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B are inflated. The hole body 41A, 41B is formed in a substantially elliptical shape with a wider width on the longitudinal side of the protection body part 10, i.e., the front-rear direction side (see Fig. 10). The check valve mechanism 43A, 43B is configured to include two valve bodies 44A, 44B, 45A, 45B that are elongated and capable of closing the hole body 41A, 41B, and are arranged so as to be overlapped on the vertical side when the inflation is completed. The valve bodies 44A, 44B, 45A, 45B are formed of a sheet body having flexibility similar to the base material constituting the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B, and one end 44a, 45a of the valve bodies 44A, 44B, 45A, 45B facing each other in the longitudinal direction when stacked is connected to the peripheral walls 37A, 37B of the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B, and the other end 44b, 45b is a free end. In the standby state of the protection body 10, the intake holes 40A, 40B are sandwiched and blocked between the inner wall 14 and the outer wall 15, and when the protection body 10 is transformed from the standby state to the receiving state (when moving from the standby position P1 to the receiving position P2), the hole bodies 41A, 41B are opened as the inner wall 14 as the occupant receiving part and the outer wall 15 as the protection wall part move away from each other. When the protective main body part 10 transforms from the standby state to the receiving state (when moving from the standby position P1 to the receiving position P2), the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B inflate by allowing the atmosphere A to flow into the interior through the hole bodies 41A, 41B of the air intake holes 40A, 40B opened on the underside (see A in Figure 13).Then, when the protective main body part 10 has completed its deformation into the receiving state (when it has completed its movement to the receiving position P2), the hole bodies 41A, 41B of each air intake hole 40A, 40B are subjected to the pressure of the atmosphere A that has flowed inside and are blocked by the two valve bodies 44A, 44B, 45A, 45B (see B in Figure 13), preventing the atmosphere A that has flowed inside from flowing back to the outside, and maintaining the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B in an inflated state.

[0025] In the peripheral walls 37A, 37B of the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B, the opposing side regions 37b, 37b (i.e., the regions not connected to the protective main body part 10) which are arranged opposite each other in the non-inflated state, have a membrane length in a cross section approximately along the horizontal direction which is set to be approximately the same as the width dimension on the left-right side of the protective main body part 10 at the waiting position P1, that is, set to be larger than the diagonal length dimension when the protective main body part 10 at the receiving position P2 is viewed from the top-bottom side (see Figures 6 and 9). Therefore, with the mutually spaced-apart separated side regions 37a, 37a of the peripheral walls 37A, 37B connected to the protective main body 10, the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B fill the inside of the protective main body 10 by causing wrinkles in the mutually opposed opposing side regions 37b, 37b and bringing these opposing side regions 37b, 37b into close contact with each other (see Figure 9).

[0026] In the occupant protection device S of the embodiment, when an external force T acts on the vehicle V from the right side toward the inside, the external force T directly presses the protection main body part 10 inward, and the protection main body part 10 moves while deforming from the standby position P1 state (standby state) to the receiving position P2 state (receiving state), and the protection main body part 10 in the receiving state is arranged so as to cover the right side of the waist MW of the driver MD, as shown in Fig. 14. At this time, inside the protection main body part 10, the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B are arranged in a state in which the inside is filled with air flowing in.

[0027] In the passenger protection device S of the embodiment, when an external force T acts from the side of the vehicle V (the right side in the case of the embodiment), the external force T is utilized to move the inner wall portion 14 of the protection main body portion 10 constituting the passenger receiving portion so as to be disposed so as to cover the side of the waist region MW, which is the region to be protected of the driver MD as the passenger, and the inner wall portion 14 is formed of a material having shape retention. Therefore, in the passenger protection device S of the embodiment, even if it is mounted on a type of vehicle V that does not have a door that covers the side of the passenger (driver MD), the right side of the driver MD can be quickly covered by the inner wall portion 14 of the protection main body portion 10, and the waist region MW can be appropriately restrained by the inner wall portion 14 of the protection main body portion 10. As a result, the driver MD can be appropriately restrained from moving toward the side where the external force acts (the right side). Furthermore, in the embodiment of the occupant protection device S, the external force T acting from the right side of the vehicle V is directly received by a portion near the front outer joint 20A (specifically, the outer surface 12c of the front wall portion 12) that constitutes the external force receiving portion, and the external force T acting on the portion near the front outer joint 20A is utilized to move the inner wall portion 14 from the waiting position P1 to the receiving position P2 by the front wall portion 12 and the outer wall portion 15 that constitute the moving mechanism. Therefore, there is no need to provide a separate driving source, and the configuration is simple and can be manufactured inexpensively.

[0028] Therefore, the passenger protection device S of the embodiment can adequately protect the driver MD as a passenger, even in a vehicle V that does not have doors, with a simple configuration.

[0029] Furthermore, in the occupant protection device S of the embodiment, the outer wall 15 as a protective wall is disposed so as to cover the action (right side) of an external force of the inner wall 14 as an occupant receiving portion in the receiving position P2 (receiving state). Therefore, the inner wall 14 can be prevented from coming into direct contact with a colliding vehicle or the like that applies an external force, and the lumbar region MW can be more accurately restrained by the inner wall 14. If such a point is not taken into consideration, the occupant protection device S may be configured to have only the occupant receiving portion and not have a protective wall.

[0030] Furthermore, in the embodiment of the occupant protection device S, at the receiving position P2, the wall portion 12, the rear wall portion 13, the inner wall portion 14, and the outer wall portion 15, which are approximately rectangular cylindrical in shape, are configured to be stacked on top of each other and arranged on the side of the seat 1 in the standby position P1, thereby allowing for compact installation. Furthermore, in the embodiment of the occupant protection device S, the area near the front outer circumferential pair 20A, which is located farthest outward (to the right) at the standby position P1 (specifically, the outer surface 12c of the front wall portion 12), constitutes the external force receiving portion, and the front wall portion 12 and the outer wall portion 15 constitute the driving mechanism. Therefore, when an external force T that pushes inward acts on the area near the front outer circumferential pair 20A, the front wall portion 12 and the outer wall portion 15 receive this external force T and move while rising from the flat, unfolded state, and the inner wall portion 14 also moves along with the movement of the front wall portion 12 and the outer wall portion 15. This means that no separate driving source is required, and the device can be moved from the standby position P1 to the receiving position P2, resulting in an even simpler configuration.

[0031] Furthermore, in the passenger protection device S of the embodiment, airbags (inner airbag 35A, outer airbag 35B) filled with air are disposed between the inner wall 14 as the passenger receiving portion and the outer wall 15 as the protective wall at the receiving position P2. Therefore, even if the outer wall 15 comes into contact with a colliding vehicle or the like that applies an external force, the reaction force from the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B that are inflated with air inside prevent the outer wall 15 from approaching the inner wall 14, so that the vehicle or the like that applies the external force T can be prevented from further entering the vehicle. Even if the driver MD tries to move toward the outer wall 15 (outward) due to the reaction, the inner wall 14 that is disposed so as to cover the sides of the waist MW can restrain the waist MW, so that the movement of the driver MD toward the outer wall 15 (outward) can be more accurately prevented.

[0032] Furthermore, in the occupant protection device S of the embodiment, the airbags (inner airbag 35A, outer airbag 35B) have peripheral walls connected to the inner wall portion 14 (occupant receiving portion) and the outer wall portion 15 (protective wall portion) and have air intake holes 40A, 40B that allow air to flow into the interior when the inner wall portion 14 moves. Therefore, when the inner wall portion 14 (occupant receiving portion) moves, the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B are inflated so that air flows into the interior through the air intake holes 40A, 40B. This eliminates the need for a gas supply member such as an inflator for inflating the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B, and allows the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B to be manufactured inexpensively as a simple configuration, even though the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B are disposed.

[0033] Specifically, in the case of this embodiment, an inner airbag 35A and an outer airbag 35B are arranged within the protective main body 10, and the inner airbag 35A connects the separated side region 37a of the peripheral wall 37A to the inner wall portion 14 and the front wall portion 12, and the outer airbag 35B connects the separated side region 37a of the peripheral wall 37B to the outer wall portion 15 and the rear wall portion 13. The inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B are configured to be arranged so as to cover the entire inside of the protection main body 10 in a substantially rectangular shape in a flat deployed state in the protection main body 10 at the standby position P1, so that in the protection main body 10 in a receiving state in which the protection main body 10 is deformed while moving to the receiving position P2, the opposing side regions 37b, 37b arranged opposite to each other in the peripheral walls 37A, 37B are wrinkled and tightly fitted without any gaps, so that the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B are arranged to fill the inside of the protection main body 10. In addition, the intake holes 40A, 40B formed in the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B have check valve mechanisms 43A, 43B, so that the atmosphere A (air) that once flows inside is unlikely to escape, and the internal pressure of the inflated inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B can be maintained. Therefore, even if the protective main body 10 is pressed from both the inner side (the driver MD side) and the outer side (the side where external force is applied), the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B, which are maintained in an inflated state by preventing the escape of atmospheric air (air) from the inside, can prevent the inner wall portion 14 and the outer wall portion 15 from being compressed so as to bring them closer together, and can accurately restrain the waist MW of the driver MD.

[0034] In the passenger protection device S of the embodiment, the moving mechanism for moving the protection main body part 10 from the standby position P1 to the receiving position P2 is composed of the front wall part 12 and the outer wall part 15 themselves that constitute the protection main body part 10, and the deformation movement of this protection main body part 10 is a reversible deformation movement. In addition, the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B arranged in the protection main body part 10 are also configured to inflate by allowing air to flow into the inside through the air intake holes 40A and 40B when the protection main body part 10 moves. Therefore, after moving to the receiving position (deforming into the receiving state), the protection main body part 10 can be returned to the standby position (standby state). The air intake holes 40A and 40B are configured to have check valve mechanisms 43A and 43B, but they cannot completely prevent the air (air) that has flowed into the inside from flowing out, and after a predetermined time has passed, the air can be exhausted from the inside of the inner airbag 35A and the outer airbag 35B, and they can be deployed flat.

[0035] In the occupant protection device S of the embodiment, the protection main body 10 (front wall 12, rear wall 13, inner wall 14 (occupant receiving portion), outer wall 15 (protective wall portion)) is made of soft synthetic resin, but the material from which the protection main body is made is not limited to that of the embodiment and may be any material capable of absorbing energy by plastic deformation or brittle fracture, for example, it may be made of hard synthetic resin or metal plate. Also, in the occupant protection device S of the embodiment, two airbags, an inner airbag 35A and an outer airbag 35B, are arranged inside the protection main body 10, but the number of airbags arranged is of course not limited to that of the embodiment and may be configured to be one. [Explanation of symbols]

[0036] 1...seat, 2...backrest, 3...seat portion, 10...protective main body portion (four-bar link mechanism), 12...front wall portion, 13...rear wall portion, 14...inner wall portion (occupant receiving portion), 15...outer wall portion (protective wall portion), 20A...front outer pair (external force receiving portion), 20B...front inner pair, 20C...rear outer pair, 20D...rear inner pair, 35A...inner airbag, 35B...outer airbag, 40A, 40B...air intake, MD...driver (occupant), MW...lower back portion (area to be protected), V...vehicle, S...occupant protection device.

Claims

1. An occupant protection device capable of protecting an occupant seated in a seat when an external force acts inward from the side of a vehicle, comprising: Located to the side of the occupant, an occupant receiving portion that can be arranged from a standby position to a receiving position where the occupant's part to be protected can be received; an external force receiving portion disposed on an external force acting side of the seat and capable of receiving the external force; a moving mechanism that moves the occupant receiving portion from the standby position to the receiving position when the external force is received by the external force receiving portion; , An occupant protection device characterized in that the occupant receiving portion is formed from a material having shape retention properties and is positioned on the side of the seat in the standby position, and when the external force receiving portion receives the external force, the moving mechanism causes the occupant receiving portion to be positioned at the receiving position so as to close the space between the seat portion and the backrest portion of the seat and cover the side of the area to be protected.

2. 2. The passenger protection device according to claim 1, further comprising a protective wall portion disposed so as to cover a side of the passenger receiving portion to which an external force is applied at the receiving position.

3. The four-joint link mechanism is connected to each other by a rotating pair to form a four-joint link mechanism. The four-joint link mechanism has a generally rectangular tubular shape with an axial direction generally aligned along the vertical direction, and includes a front wall portion, a rear wall portion, an inner wall portion, and an outer wall portion. The rear wall portion is disposed as a fixed link fixed to the seat side, The inner wall portion constitutes the occupant receiving portion, The outer wall portion constitutes the protective wall portion, The front wall portion, the rear wall portion, the inner wall portion, and the outer wall portion are configured to be arranged on the side of the seat in a substantially flat plate shape in which the front outer turning pair connecting the outer wall portion and the front wall portion is facing outward in the standby position, A portion near the front outer circumferential pair constitutes the external force receiving portion, 3. The passenger protection device according to claim 2, wherein the outer wall portion and the front wall portion constitute the movement mechanism.

4. 4. The passenger protection device according to claim 2, wherein an airbag filled with air is disposed between the passenger receiving portion and the protective wall portion at the receiving position.

5. 5. The occupant protection device according to claim 4, wherein the airbag has a peripheral wall connected to the occupant receiving portion and the protective wall portion, and has an air intake hole that allows air to flow into the inside when the occupant receiving portion moves.

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