Airbag device

Abstract

This airbag device comprises a housing and a cover. The housing has a fixing part in which an airbag is fixed, an opening part, and a side wall part extending from the fixing part to the opening part. The cover has a cover part for covering the opening part, a connecting part extending from the cover part along the side wall part, and a through-hole located in the connecting part. The side wall part includes: a first locking part, which is formed by folding the distal end section of the side wall part toward the fixing part and on which the through-hole is locked; and a second locking part for restricting the connecting part from being displaced toward the fixing part. The second locking part extends from the side wall part toward the opening part and is inclined away from the side wall part.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an airbag device. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known an airbag device that includes a housing that houses an airbag and a cover attached to the housing (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The airbag device of Patent Document 1 includes a housing that houses and fixes the airbag in a folded state, and a cover that covers an opening of the housing. The cover is engaged with the housing. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2015-178321 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The airbag device of Patent Document 1 is mounted on a vehicle, and when a vehicle collision is detected, the airbag breaks through the cover and inflates. When the airbag inflates and deploys, the force of the airbag inflation (airbag reaction force) may deform the cover and housing. Even if the cover and housing are deformed by such airbag reaction force, it is preferable to prevent the cover from coming off the housing.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an airbag device that can prevent a cover from coming off a housing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The airbag device according to the present disclosure includes a housing that accommodates an airbag and a cover attached to the housing. The housing has a fixing portion that fixes the airbag, an opening that faces the fixing portion and opens in the direction in which the airbag deploys, and a sidewall portion that extends from the fixing portion toward the opening. The cover has a cover portion that covers the opening, a connecting portion that extends from the cover portion along the sidewall portion, and a through-hole disposed in the connecting portion. The sidewall portion includes a first locking portion that protrudes from the sidewall portion and has a tip portion that is folded back toward the fixing portion and that engages with the through-hole, and a second locking portion that is disposed closer to the fixing portion than the first locking portion and restricts displacement of the connecting portion toward the fixing portion. The second locking portion extends from the sidewall portion toward the opening and is inclined in a direction away from the sidewall portion.

[0007] With this airbag device, even if the airbag deploys and the cover and housing are deformed, the end of the second locking portion disposed on the extension portion of the housing catches on the connecting portion of the cover, thereby preventing the cover from coming off the housing. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an airbag device that can prevent the cover from coming off the housing. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an airbag device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure mounted in a vehicle; [Figure 2] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating a state in which the housing and the cover are fixed together according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] 1 illustrates a housing according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] VV cross section of Figure 2. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the first locking portion and the second locking portion of FIG. 4. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the longitudinal direction of a vehicle C will be referred to as Q in the drawings, and the front will be referred to as F. The width direction of the vehicle C will be referred to as P in the drawings, and the right side as viewed from the rear of the vehicle C will be referred to as R. Furthermore, the vertical direction of the vehicle C will be referred to as G in the drawings, and the upper side will be referred to as U.

[0011] 1 and 2, the airbag device 1 includes a housing 2 that houses an airbag 6, and a cover 4 that is attached to the housing 2. The airbag device 1 of this embodiment is a knee airbag that inflates and deploys the airbag 6 (see the dashed line in FIG. 1) toward the shins of an occupant M of a vehicle C. The vehicle C has a steering column C1, and the housing 2 and the cover 4 are disposed below the steering column C1.

[0012] 2 and 3, the housing 2 has a fixing portion 8, an opening 10, and a side wall portion 12. The housing 2 of this embodiment functions as a retaining bracket for retaining an airbag unit 6b (described later) on a vehicle body member such as a front deck member (not shown) of the vehicle C. In this embodiment, the housing 2 is a sheet metal member formed in a box shape having the opening 10. However, the housing 2 may be a member formed of other materials, such as an aluminum die-cast or resin part formed in such a shape, in addition to the sheet metal member.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 4 , the fixing portion 8 is a surface that fixes the airbag 6 in a folded state and the inflator 6a that supplies inflation gas to the airbag 6. In this embodiment, the fixing portion 8 is a surface that fixes an airbag unit 6b in which the airbag 6 and the inflator 6a are integrated. The opening 10 is disposed opposite the surface of the fixing portion 8 and opens in the direction in which the airbag 6 inflates and deploys. In this embodiment, the airbag 6 inflates and deploys toward the rear of the vehicle C. Therefore, the opening 10 opens toward the rear of the vehicle C. In this embodiment, the airbag unit 6b is inserted through the opening 10 and fixed to the fixing portion 8.

[0014] As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the side wall 12 extends from the upper and lower ends of the fixed portion 8 toward the rear of the vehicle. Specifically, the side wall 12 is a surface that extends from the upper end 8a of the fixed portion 8 to the upper end 10a of the opening 10. In this embodiment, the side wall 12 forms the upper surface of the housing 2. In addition, the housing 2 has a lower surface 16 (part of the side wall 12 in this embodiment). The lower surface 16 is a surface that extends from the lower end of the fixed portion 8 to the lower end 10b of the opening 10.

[0015] The side wall portion 12 includes a first locking portion 18, a lower locking portion 19, and a second locking portion 20. The first locking portion 18 protrudes from the side wall portion 12, and has a tip portion 18a that is folded back toward the fixed portion 8. The lower locking portion 19 extends in a direction away from the lower surface 16, and has a tip portion 19a that is folded back toward the fixed portion 8. As shown in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, a plurality of first locking portions 18 (five in FIG. 3) are provided at the end portion 12a of the side wall portion 12. Furthermore, a plurality of lower locking portions 19 are provided at the end portion 16a of the lower surface 16.

[0016] The second locking portion 20 is disposed closer to the fixed portion 8 than the first locking portion 18, extends from the side wall portion 12 toward the opening 10, and is inclined in a direction away from the side wall portion 12. The second locking portion 20 functions as a restricting member that restricts displacement of the connection portion 24 toward the fixed portion 8. In this embodiment, the second locking portion 20 extends toward the rear of the vehicle C and is inclined toward an upper U of the vehicle C. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , a plurality of second locking portions 20 are disposed on one side of a direction intersecting the extension direction of the side wall portion 12 (the longitudinal direction Q in this embodiment). In this embodiment, two second locking portions 20 are disposed on the right side of the vehicle width direction P of the vehicle C. As shown in FIG. 1 , a harness (an example of a vehicle harness) connected to a control device (not shown) of the airbag unit 6b is arranged on the left side (the other side of the direction intersecting the extension direction) of the side wall portion 12 where the second locking portion 20 is not disposed. In this way, by disposing the second locking portion 20 biased to one side in the vehicle width direction P, it is easy to avoid interference between the second locking portion 20 and other devices. It should be noted that devices of vehicle C other than the harness may be arranged on the left side.

[0017] 5, the second locking portion 20 is provided with a bead 20c that protrudes in a direction away from the side wall portion 12. The bead 20c is formed to extend from the second locking portion 20 to the side wall portion 12. By providing such a bead 20c, the second locking portion 20 is reinforced.

[0018] 2 and 5, the second engaging portions 20 in this embodiment are formed by cutting and raising a sheet metal member. As a result, notch holes 20b are formed in the side wall portion 12. To prevent the strength of the housing 2 from being weakened by these notch holes 20b, in this embodiment, the first engaging portions 18 and the second engaging portions 20 are arranged alternately in a direction intersecting the extension direction of the side wall portion 12 (in this embodiment, the vehicle width direction P). More specifically, two second engaging portions 20 are arranged between three first engaging portions 18 lined up on the right side in the vehicle width direction P. In this way, the airbag device 1 prevents a decrease in the strength of the housing 2 while suppressing the cost of forming the second engaging portions 20.

[0019] As shown in Fig. 5, the end 20a of the second locking portion 20 is positioned closer to the opening 10 than the end 24a of the connecting portion 24 of the cover 4, which will be described later. In other words, the second locking portion 20 and the connecting portion 24 are positioned to overlap in the up-down direction G. Furthermore, the end 20a of the second locking portion 20 is positioned higher than the tip 18a of the first locking portion 18. In this embodiment, the end 20a of the second locking portion 20 is positioned above U above the tip 18a of the first locking portion 18.

[0020] The cover 4 is provided to cover the opening 10. In this embodiment, the cover 4 is a resin trim member that is disposed behind the airbag unit 6b and that conceals the airbag unit 6b so that it cannot be seen from inside the interior of the vehicle C. However, the cover 4 may be a component formed from a material other than resin. The cover 4 has a cover portion 22, a connecting portion 24, a through hole 26, and a locking hole 28.

[0021] The cover portion 22 covers the opening 10. In this embodiment, the cover portion 22 covers the rear surface of the airbag unit 6b in the up-down direction G. A weak portion 30 and a hinge portion (not shown) are arranged across the width of the cover portion 22 at the middle in the up-down direction. When the airbag 6 deploys, the weak portion of the cover portion 22 is broken (ruptured), and the cover portion 22 rotates about the hinge, opening the cover portion 22 up and down, deploying the airbag 6 rearward.

[0022] The connecting portion 24 extends from the cover portion 22 along the side wall portion 12. The through hole 26 is disposed in the connecting portion 24. The connecting portion 24 is disposed above the cover 4. The connecting portion 24 extends along the side wall portion 12 that forms the upper surface of the housing 2. The lower connecting portion 25 located below extends along the lower surface 16. As shown in FIG. 5 , an inclined surface 24b is provided at the end 24a of the connecting portion 24, inclined in the same direction as the inclination of the second locking portion 20 and extending toward the end 24a of the connecting portion 24.

[0023] The through-hole 26 is disposed in the connecting portion 24, and the tip end 18a of the first locking portion 18 is inserted therethrough. The locking hole 28 is disposed in the lower connecting portion 25, and the lower locking portion 19 is inserted therethrough. When an operator attaches the housing 2 to the cover 4, the tip end 18a of the first locking portion 18 is inserted through the through-hole 26. At this time, because the second locking portion 20 is inclined rearward, the connecting portion 24 is guided by the second locking portion 20, making it easy to insert the first locking portion 18 into the through-hole 26. Furthermore, because the end 20a of the second locking portion 20 is disposed above the tip end 18a of the first locking portion 18, and the end 24a of the connecting portion 24 has an inclined surface 24b, it is easy to guide the through-hole 26 into the first locking portion 18. Then, the lower locking portion 19 is inserted through the locking hole 28, and the lower locking portion 19 is hooked onto the locking hole 28. In this manner, the cover 4 is attached to the housing 2. When the housing 2 is attached to the cover 4 in this manner, the airbag device 1 is fixed to a body member of the vehicle C.

[0024] Next, the movement of the cover 4 and the function of the second engaging portion 20 when the airbag 6 of the airbag device 1 of this embodiment is inflated and deployed will be described.

[0025] When a collision of the vehicle C is detected and the airbag 6 inflates and deploys, at least the cover 4 is pushed by the force of the airbag 6, causing the weak portions to break and deform, opening up and down. Specifically, the cover 4 breaks at the weak portions and separates into upper and lower halves, and then is pushed by the airbag 6 and deforms up and down while opening. When the airbag 6 further inflates and deploys and hits the occupant, the airbag 6 is pushed forward by the reaction force, causing the cover 4 to deform up and down and displace forward. As the cover 4 is pushed and deformed by the airbag 6 in this manner, the through-hole 26 of the connecting portion 24 may be displaced in a direction away from the first engaging portion 18. In such a case, in the airbag device 1 of this embodiment, the second engaging portion 20 extends toward the rear of the vehicle C and is inclined toward the upper U of the vehicle C. Therefore, the connecting portion 24 of the cover 4 abuts against the second engaging portion 20 and is guided downward along the inclination, thereby restricting the forward and upward displacement of the connecting portion 24. This prevents the first locking portion 18 from slipping out of the through hole 26 of the connecting portion 24, causing the mutual locking to be released.

[0026] Moreover, the end 20a of the second locking portion 20 is disposed closer to the opening 10 than the end 24a of the connecting portion 24, and the second locking portion 20 and the connecting portion 24 are disposed so as to overlap in the up-down direction G. This allows the second locking portion 20 to be reliably brought into contact with the connecting portion 24 when the cover 4 is displaced. As a result, it is possible to more reliably prevent the first locking portion 18 from falling out of the through-hole 26 and the cover 4 from coming off the housing 2.

[0027] As described above, according to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an airbag device 1 that can prevent the cover 4 from coming off the housing 2.

[0028] <Other embodiments> Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the gist of the invention. In particular, the multiple modifications described in this specification can be arbitrarily combined as necessary.

[0029] (a) In the above embodiment, the airbag device 1 is disposed below the steering column C1, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, the airbag device 1 of the present disclosure may be used as an airbag on the passenger side.

[0030] (b) In the above embodiment, an example was described in which the second engaging portion 20 extends rearward and inclines upward in the direction U, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. The second engaging portion 20 may extend from the side wall portion 12 toward the opening 10 and incline in a direction away from the side wall portion 12. For example, if the airbag device 1 is mounted tilted with respect to the front-to-rear direction Q, the width direction P, or the up-to-down direction G of the vehicle C, the direction in which the second engaging portion 20 extends may be changed to match the tilt.

[0031] Although various embodiments have been described above with reference to the drawings, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is clear that a person skilled in the art can conceive of various modifications or alterations within the scope of the claims, and it is understood that these also naturally fall within the technical scope of the present invention. Furthermore, the components of the above-described embodiments may be combined in any manner without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[0032] This application is based on a Japanese patent application (Patent Application No. 2022-052744) filed on March 29, 2022, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. [Explanation of symbols]

[0033] 1: Airbag device, 2: Housing, 4: Cover 6: Airbag, 8: Fixing part, 10: Opening 12: Side wall part, 16a: End part, 18: First locking part 18a: tip portion, 20: second locking portion, 20a: end portion 20c: Bead, 22: Cover 24: Connection portion, 24a: End portion 24b: Inclined surface, 26: Through hole C: Vehicle, C1: Steering column, M: Occupant

Claims

1. a housing that accommodates an airbag; and a cover that is attached to the housing. An airbag device comprising: the housing has a fixing portion that fixes the airbag, an opening that faces the fixing portion and opens in a direction in which the airbag deploys, and a side wall portion that extends from the fixing portion toward the opening, the cover includes a cover portion that covers the opening, a connection portion that extends from the cover portion along the side wall portion, and a through hole that is disposed in the connection portion; The side wall portion includes a first locking portion that protrudes from the side wall portion and has a tip portion that is folded back toward the fixed portion side, and that locks the through hole, and a second locking portion that is arranged closer to the fixed portion than the first locking portion and that restricts displacement of the connection portion toward the fixed portion side. the second engaging portion extends from the side wall portion toward the opening side and is inclined in a direction away from the side wall portion, the housing is a sheet metal member, The second engaging portion is formed by cutting and raising the sheet metal member. Airbag device.

2. The connecting portion has an inclined surface that is inclined in the same direction as the inclination of the second locking portion toward an end of the connecting portion. The airbag device according to claim 1.

3. An end of the second engaging portion is positioned higher than the tip of the first engaging portion. The airbag device according to claim 1.

4. an end of the second locking portion is disposed closer to the opening than an end of the connecting portion; The airbag device according to claim 1.

5. a plurality of the first locking portions and a plurality of the second locking portions are arranged on the side wall portion, and the first locking portions and the second locking portions are arranged alternately in a direction intersecting with an extension direction of the side wall portion; The airbag device according to claim 1.

6. The second engaging portion is provided with a bead extending along the extending direction of the second engaging portion, The bead is formed to extend from the second engaging portion to the side wall portion. The airbag device according to claim 1.

7. the airbag is a knee airbag that is disposed below the steering column of the vehicle and deploys toward the shins of an occupant, The side wall portions extend from at least the upper and lower ends of the fixing portion toward the rear of the vehicle. The first and second locking portions are provided to protrude in the up-down direction from the side wall portion, When the airbag is deployed, the cover portion is opened in the vertical direction of the vehicle. The airbag device according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. the vehicle harness is routed on one side of the steering column in a direction intersecting with the extension direction of the side wall portion, The airbag device according to claim 7, wherein the second engaging portion is disposed on the other side in a direction intersecting with the extending direction of the side wall portion of the steering column.

Images