Vehicle occupant restraint device

Abstract

To provide an occupant restraint device for a vehicle effectively restraining an occupant by an expandedly deployed center air bag irrespectively to a longitudinal position of a vehicle seat.SOLUTION: An occupant restraint device 10 for a vehicle includes: a vehicle seat 12 movably provided in a vehicle longitudinal direction in a passenger compartment; an interior component 30 provided on a vehicle widthwise inner side with respect to the vehicle seat 12 in the passenger compartment in a front view; an inflator disposed in the vehicle seat 12 and ejecting gas through actuation; and a center air bag 24 which is disposed on a side part in the vehicle widthwise inner side of the seat back 16 on the vehicle seat 12, and expandedly deployed vehicle widthwise inward of the occupant P seated on the vehicle seat 12 when the gas is supplied to an inner part thereof, while a bottom surface 26 of which comes in contact with a top surface 30A of the interior component 30, The center air bag 24 is formed into a substantially dog-leg "<" shape protruding toward the occupant P in a front view, and a frictional coefficient of the bottom surface 26 is made larger than frictional coefficients of the other surfaces.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle occupant restraint device. [Background technology]

[0002] A center airbag device including an inflator that generates gas and a center airbag that inflates and deploys with the gas when the inflator is activated to protect the sides of the occupant has been known for some time (see, for example, Patent Document 1). This center airbag has a torso protection section that inflates and deploys on the side of the occupant's torso, a support section that is provided on the console box side of the torso protection section and is pressed against the upper surface of the console box when inflated and deployed, and a waist protection section that inflates and deploys between the occupant's waist and the side of the console box. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-160375 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, if the lower end of the inflated center airbag does not sufficiently overlap with the console box in a side view, in other words, if the vehicle seat is in a forward position where the front end face of the side of the seatback is located further forward than the front of the console box, such as in the case of a small occupant, the center airbag will find it difficult to obtain sufficient reaction force from the console box when the inflated center airbag restrains the occupant.

[0005] Therefore, when an occupant moves inward in the vehicle width direction due to the inertial force of a side collision of the vehicle, the occupant may rotate (fall down) inward in the vehicle width direction together with the center airbag around the portion where the inflator of the center airbag is connected, in a plan view. In other words, it may be difficult for the inflated and deployed center airbag to effectively restrain the occupant. As such, there is still room for improvement in a configuration that allows the inflated and deployed center airbag to effectively restrain the occupant regardless of the fore-aft position of the vehicle seat (even when the vehicle seat is in the forward position).

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle occupant restraint device that can effectively restrain an occupant with an inflated and deployed center airbag regardless of the front-to-rear position of the vehicle seat. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above object, a vehicle occupant restraint device according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises a vehicle seat provided in a vehicle compartment so as to be movable in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle, an interior part provided in the vehicle compartment more inward in a vehicle width direction than the vehicle seat in a front view seen from the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, an inflator provided in the vehicle seat and configured to eject gas when activated, and a center airbag provided on a side portion of a seat back of the vehicle seat on the inner side in the vehicle width direction, the center airbag being inflated and deployed inward in the vehicle width direction of an occupant seated in the vehicle seat when the gas is supplied thereto, and having a bottom surface that contacts an upper surface of the interior part, wherein the center airbag The outer edges of the two base fabrics are sewn together to form a single bag. Front view from the front and rear of the vehicle After the seat is fully inflated, the outer wall in the width direction is The bottom surface of the cushion is formed in a generally "<" shape that is convex toward the occupant, and the coefficient of friction of the bottom surface is made greater than the coefficient of friction of the other surfaces.

[0008] According to the invention of claim 1, in the event of a side collision of the vehicle, the inflator is activated and gas ejected from the inflator is supplied to the inside of a center airbag provided on the inner side of the seat back of the vehicle seat in the vehicle width direction. As a result, the center airbag inflates and deploys toward the inner side of the vehicle occupant seated in the vehicle seat in the vehicle width direction. Note that "in the event of a side collision of the vehicle" includes not only when a side collision of the vehicle is detected but also when a side collision of the vehicle is predicted.

[0009] For example, if the occupant sitting in the vehicle seat is small, the vehicle seat may be positioned forward so that the front end surface of the side of the seatback is located further forward than the front of the console box in a side view. In this case, the inflated and deployed center airbag has difficulty receiving reaction force from the console box.

[0010] However, when viewed from the front from the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle, the center airbag is formed in a roughly "<" shape that convexly faces the occupant, and the coefficient of friction of the bottom surface that comes into contact with the top surface of the interior part (the console box or a storage section located further forward than the console box, or both) is made larger than the coefficient of friction of the other surfaces.

[0011] Therefore, even if the inertial force caused by a side collision of the vehicle causes the occupant to move inward in the vehicle width direction and press the center airbag inward in the vehicle width direction, the bottom surface of the center airbag is prevented from shifting from the top surface of the interior part, and therefore the center airbag is prevented from rotating (collapsed) inward in the vehicle width direction around the part where the inflator is connected in a plan view.

[0012] The upper part of the center airbag is pushed inward in the vehicle width direction by the occupant's shoulders and then head, causing it to bend downward and deform, generating a load toward the vehicle's lower side, improving the adhesion of the bottom surface to the upper surface of the interior component and effectively obtaining a reaction force from the interior component. As a result, the occupant is effectively restrained by the inflated and deployed center airbag regardless of the fore-and-aft position of the vehicle seat. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] As described above, according to the present invention, the inflated and deployed center airbag can effectively restrain an occupant regardless of the front-to-rear position of the vehicle seat. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1A is a schematic side view showing an inflated and deployed state of a center airbag according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 1B is a schematic plan view showing an inflated and deployed state of a center airbag according to the present embodiment. [Figure 2] 1A and 1B are schematic front views showing a state before and after an occupant is restrained by the center airbag according to the present embodiment, respectively. [Figure 3] 3A is a schematic side view showing the stored state of the center airbag according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 3B is a schematic enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the line XX in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. For convenience of explanation, the arrow UP shown in each drawing indicates the upward direction of the vehicle and the vehicle seat, the arrow FR indicates the forward direction of the vehicle and the vehicle seat, and the arrow RH indicates the rightward direction of the vehicle and the vehicle seat. Therefore, in the following description, unless otherwise specified, when the directions of up / down, front / rear, and left / right are mentioned, they refer to up / down, front / rear, left / right, and right / left of the vehicle and the vehicle seat. Furthermore, the left / right direction is synonymous with the vehicle width direction and the seat width direction.

[0016] 1 and 2, a vehicle seat 12 constituting a vehicle occupant restraint device 10 according to this embodiment has a seat cushion 14 on which an occupant P sits (supporting the buttocks and thighs of the occupant P), a seatback 16 that supports the back of the occupant P, and a headrest 18 that supports the head of the occupant P. The occupant P is restrained in this vehicle seat 12 by a seat belt device (not shown).

[0017] It should be noted that "occupant P" is, for example, a small occupant equivalent to AF05 (5th percentile of adult American women) of the WorldSID (World Side Impact Dummy). Also, for example, the vehicle seat 12 is a right-side front seat configured to be movable in the front-rear direction by a known electric mechanism, and a vehicle equipped with this vehicle seat 12 in the passenger compartment is, for example, a right-hand drive vehicle. In other words, this vehicle seat 12 is a driver's seat.

[0018] A console box (not shown) is provided on the floor (not shown) of the vehicle interior, on the vehicle width direction inner side (center portion in the vehicle width direction) of the vehicle seat 12. The console box is a rectangular hollow box with the longitudinal direction in a plan view, and its top is open and configured to be openable and closable with a lid.

[0019] The position of the vehicle seat 12 where, in a side view, the front end surface 16A located at the forefront of the side portion (side support portion) of the seat back 16 is located forward of the flat front wall of the console box is defined as the frontmost position. In this embodiment, in the case of a small occupant P, the vehicle seat 12 is set to the frontmost position.

[0020] A storage section 32 having an openable and closable lid 34 is provided on the front side of the console box. In this embodiment, the console box and the storage section 32 are collectively referred to as the interior part 30. In the following description, when there is no need to distinguish between the upper surface of the lid of the console box and the upper surface 34A of the lid 34 of the storage section 32, they will be referred to as the upper surface 30A of the interior part 30.

[0021] A center airbag device 20 that deploys toward the inside of an occupant P seated in the vehicle seat 12 in the vehicle width direction is provided on the left side (hereinafter referred to as the "left side"), which is the side on the inside in the vehicle width direction of the seatback 16 of the vehicle seat 12. As shown in FIG. 1, the center airbag device 20 includes an inflator 22 embedded in the left side of the seatback 16, and a center airbag 24 into which gas ejected from the inflator 22 is supplied.

[0022] The inflator 22 is a cylindrical gas generator formed in a substantially cylindrical shape, with its axial direction aligned (substantially vertical) with the side frames (not shown) that form the framework of both the left and right sides of the seat back 16. The inflator 22 is activated when a side collision of the vehicle is detected or predicted (hereinafter referred to as "side collision"), and is capable of instantly supplying gas to the inside of the center airbag 24.

[0023] The center airbag 24 is formed into a single bag by sewing the outer edges of two pieces of base fabric together, and is inflated and deployed when gas ejected from the inflator 22 is supplied to the interior thereof, so that in a side view it covers at least the area from the buttocks to the head of an occupant P seated in the vehicle seat 12.

[0024] 1 and 2, in a front view seen from the front-rear direction, the center airbag 24 has a bottom surface 26 that contacts an upper surface 30A of an interior component 30 that is provided inward in the vehicle width direction (the center portion in the vehicle width direction) from the vehicle seat 12 in the vehicle compartment. In other words, depending on the front-rear position of the vehicle seat 12, the center airbag 24 comes into contact with either the upper surface of the lid of the console box or the upper surface 34A of the lid 34 of the storage section 32, or with both the upper surface of the lid of the console box and the upper surface 34A of the lid 34 of the storage section 32.

[0025] The bottom surface 26 of the center airbag 24 is coated with, for example, a silicone coating (shown exaggeratedly with dots in each drawing), and the coefficient of friction of the bottom surface 26 is made larger than the coefficients of friction of other surfaces of the center airbag 24. This makes it difficult for the bottom surface 26 of the center airbag 24 to slip off the top surface 30A of the interior part 30 when it comes into contact with the top surface 30A.

[0026] After inflation and deployment, the center airbag 24 is formed in a generally "<" shape in a front view, convex toward the occupant P. That is, after inflation and deployment, a constricted portion 28 having a generally "<" shape in a front view is formed in a generally central portion in the up-down direction (slightly above the central portion) of the outer wall 24A on the outer side in the seat width direction of the center airbag 24.

[0027] 3, the center airbag 24 stored in the left side of the seatback 16 is folded in an accordion-like manner, and the silicone-coated bottom surface 26 is disposed on the outer side (front side) so as to form a substantially C-shaped cross section. In other words, the center airbag 24 is folded and stored so that the silicone-coated parts of the bottom surface 26 do not come into contact with each other.

[0028] Next, the operation of the vehicle occupant restraint device 10 according to this embodiment configured as described above will be described.

[0029] In the event of a side collision of the vehicle, the inflator 22 is activated, and gas ejected from the inflator 22 is instantly supplied to the inside of the center airbag 24. Then, the internal pressure (inflation pressure) of the center airbag 24, which begins to inflate due to the supply of gas, ruptures the upholstery from the lower to upper part of the left side of the seat back 16 of the vehicle seat 12.

[0030] That is, the center airbag 24 inflates and deploys toward at least the buttocks, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and left side (inward in the vehicle width direction) of the head of the occupant P. As a result, in a side view, at least the left side of the occupant P from the buttocks to the head is covered from the left side by the center airbag 24. Therefore, in the event of a side collision of the vehicle, at least the left side of the occupant P from the buttocks to the head can be restrained by the center airbag 24.

[0031] For example, if the occupant P seated in the vehicle seat 12 is small, the vehicle seat 12 is positioned at the frontmost position. Therefore, when the inflated and deployed center airbag 24 restrains the occupant, the center airbag 24 has difficulty receiving sufficient reaction force from the console box.

[0032] However, the coefficient of friction of the bottom surface 26 of the center airbag 24, which comes into contact with the upper surface 30A of the interior part 30, is set to be greater than the coefficient of friction of the other surfaces. Therefore, even if the occupant P moves inward in the vehicle width direction due to the inertial force caused by a side collision of the vehicle and presses the center airbag 24 inward in the vehicle width direction, the bottom surface 26 of the center airbag 24 is prevented from shifting inward in the vehicle width direction from the upper surface 30A of the interior part 30 (mainly the upper surface 34A of the lid 34 of the storage section 32 in this case). This prevents the center airbag 24 from rotating (falling down) inward in the vehicle width direction around the portion to which the inflator 22 is connected in a plan view.

[0033] Furthermore, after inflation and deployment is complete, the center airbag 24 is formed in a generally "<" shape that convexly faces the occupant P in a front view. Therefore, when the upper part of the center airbag 24 is pushed inward in the vehicle width direction by the shoulders and then the head of the occupant P, it deforms so as to bend downward from the constricted portion 28 as a base point, thereby generating a load that acts downward. In other words, the center airbag 24 can effectively obtain a reaction force from the upper surface 30A of the interior part 30, and can improve the adhesion of the bottom surface 26 to the upper surface 30A of the interior part 30 (can increase the frictional force).

[0034] Therefore, even if the center airbag 24 attempts to rotate rearward around the portion where the inflator 22 is connected in a side view, the bottom surface 26 of the center airbag 24 is prevented from shifting forward from the upper surface 30A of the interior part 30. This also prevents the center airbag 24 from rotating rearward around the portion where the inflator 22 is connected in a side view.

[0035] In this way, according to the vehicle occupant restraint device 10 of this embodiment, even if the vehicle seat 12 is in the most forward position (regardless of the front-to-rear position of the vehicle seat 12), the inflated and deployed center airbag 24 can effectively restrain the occupant P (sufficient restraint performance for the occupant P can be ensured).

[0036] Furthermore, the center airbag 24 stored in the left side of the seatback 16 is folded so that the silicone-coated bottom surfaces 26 do not come into contact with each other. Therefore, compared to when the center airbag 24 is folded so that the bottom surfaces 26 come into contact with each other, poor deployment of the center airbag 24 due to the self-adhesiveness of the silicone coating can be prevented.

[0037] While the vehicle occupant restraint device 10 according to this embodiment has been described above with reference to the drawings, the vehicle occupant restraint device 10 according to this embodiment is not limited to the one shown in the drawings, and design modifications can be made as appropriate within the scope of the gist of the present invention. For example, a vehicle to which this embodiment is applied may not be provided with a console box, as long as the vehicle compartment is provided with interior components such as a storage compartment 32 with which the bottom surface 26 of the center airbag 24 can come into contact, in addition to the console box. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 10. Vehicle occupant restraint system 12 Vehicle seats 16 Seat back 22 Inflator 24 Center airbag 26 bottom 30 Interior parts 30A top P crew

Claims

[Claim 1] a vehicle seat provided in a vehicle compartment so as to be movable in a front-rear direction of the vehicle; an interior part provided in the vehicle compartment on an inner side in a vehicle width direction than the vehicle seat in a front view seen from a vehicle front-rear direction; an inflator provided in the vehicle seat and configured to eject gas when activated; a center airbag provided on an inner side of a seat back of the vehicle seat in a vehicle width direction, the center airbag being inflated and deployed toward an inner side of an occupant seated in the vehicle seat in a vehicle width direction when the gas is supplied thereto, and having a bottom surface that comes into contact with an upper surface of the interior component; Equipped with The center airbag is The outer edges of the two base fabrics are sewn together to form a single bag-like shape. When viewed from the front in the vehicle's fore-and-aft direction, the outer wall surface in the seat width direction after inflation and deployment is formed in an approximately "<" shape that convexly faces the occupant, and the coefficient of friction of the bottom surface is greater than the coefficients of friction of other surfaces.

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