Protection device and airbag deployment method

Abstract

This protection device includes: an airbag that inflates and deploys from a folded state to protect a protection target part; and an inflation source that inflates the airbag. The airbag has a deployment part that deploys from a reference position, and has a deployment acceleration part in a portion of the deployment part. The deployment amount of the deployment acceleration part from the reference position is larger than the deployment amount of a portion other than the deployment acceleration part in the deployment part.

Description

Protective device and airbag deployment method

[0001] The present invention relates to a protective device and a method for deploying an airbag.

[0002] Patent Document 1 proposes a protective device comprising a protective helmet with a first inflatable chamber and a wearable element with a second inflatable chamber, the wearable element further comprising an inflator unit and an activation system, the protective device being designed to trigger the inflator unit to inflate the first and second inflatable chambers when a dangerous condition to the user is identified by the activation system.

[0003] Special Publication No. 2023-533589

[0004] The protective device of Patent Document 1 includes a helmet with a first inflatable chamber attached and a wearable element with a second inflatable chamber, and the device tends to be large. In particular, the first inflatable chamber deploys to provide protection around the user's neck, and the second inflatable chamber deploys to provide protection for the user's shoulders, chest, sides, and back.

[0005] Furthermore, in the protective device of Patent Document 1, when activated, the first inflatable chamber does not come into contact with the user's neck, and the portion opposite the user's neck bulges outward.

[0006] The technology of the present disclosure provides a technology for appropriately protecting a part to be protected.

[0007] (1) In order to solve the above problem, the protective device of the present disclosure comprises an airbag that inflates and deploys from a folded state to protect a protected part, and an inflation source that inflates the airbag, wherein the airbag has a deployment section that deploys from a reference position, and a deployment promoting section in a part of the deployment section, and the amount of deployment of the deployment promoting section from the reference position is greater than the amount of deployment of a part of the deployment section other than the deployment promoting section.

[0008] (2) In the protective device described in (1), the airbag may be formed to be worn by a wearer, the deployment portion may deploy around the part to be protected, which is a part of the wearer, and the deployment promoting portion may apply a load to the part to be protected during or after the deployment of the airbag.

[0009] (3) In the protective device described in (1), the deployment portion deploys radially from the reference position, the deployment promoting portion is formed in at least a portion of the airbag in the radial direction, and the airbag may have a deployment suppressing portion in a portion other than the deployment promoting portion that has a deployment amount suppressed more than the deployment promoting portion.

[0010] (4) In the protective device described in (3), the airbag has the neck of the wearer as the protected part, the airbag is U-shaped with a right protective part covering the right side of the neck, a left protective part covering the left side of the neck, and a rear protective part covering the rear side of the neck integrated together, the right protective part, the left protective part, and the rear protective part each have an inner peripheral part that abuts against the neck when deployed and an outer peripheral part that is radially opposite to the inner peripheral part, and the deployment suppression part may be formed on the outer peripheral part.

[0011] (5) The protective device according to claim 4, wherein the deployment suppressing portion is formed on the inner peripheral portion in addition to the outer peripheral portion in the protective device described in (1).

[0012] (6) In the protective device described in (4), each of the right protective portion, the left protective portion, and the rear protective portion has a lower surface portion that abuts against the wearer's shoulder when deployed, and an upper surface portion that faces the lower surface portion, and the deployment suppression portion may also be formed on the upper surface portion and the lower surface portion.

[0013] (7) In the protection device described in (3) above, the deployment amount per unit time of the deployment promoting portion when the airbag deploys may be greater than the deployment amount of the deployment suppressing portion.

[0014] (8) In the protective device described in any one of (3) to (7), the airbag may be configured such that the stretch of the base fabric constituting the deployment promoting portion is greater than the stretch of the base fabric constituting the deployment suppressing portion.

[0015] (9) In the protective device described in any one of (3) to (7), the airbag may include a tether attached to the deployment suppression portion, and the tether may have a smaller degree of elasticity than the base fabric constituting the deployment promotion portion, and may limit the amount of deployment of the deployment suppression portion to within a predetermined amount.

[0016] (10) In the protection device according to any one of (3) to (7), the deployment promoting portion may be formed at a position that will be preferentially hit by the inflation source when the inflation source is inserted into the airbag.

[0017] (11) In the protective device described in (4), an inflation source supply section that supplies the inflation source, the airbag before deployment, and an inflation source introduction section that introduces the inflation source from the inflation source supply section to the airbag are provided in a helmet that is worn by a wearer, and the inflation source introduction section may be connected to the right protection section and the left protection section of the airbag, respectively.

[0018] In order to solve the above-described problems, the method of deploying an airbag of the present disclosure includes the steps of: supplying an inflation source to an airbag in a folded state; deploying a deployment portion of the airbag from a reference position using the inflation source; and making the amount of deployment from the reference position of a deployment promotion portion that is part of the deployment portion greater than the amount of deployment of a portion of the deployment portion other than the deployment promotion portion.

[0019] The technology of the present disclosure can provide a technology for appropriately protecting a part to be protected.

[0020] 7 is a side view of a protective device. FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the interior of a storage section. FIG. 9 is a rear perspective view showing a state before the airbag of a protective device worn by a user is deployed (pre-deployment state). FIG. 10 is a rear perspective view showing a state when the airbag of a protective device worn by a user is deployed (activated state). FIG. 11 is a front perspective view showing a state when the protective device worn by a user is activated. FIG. 12 is a side view showing a state when the airbag of a protective device worn by a user is activated. FIG. 13 is a plan view showing a state when inflation of the airbag is complete. FIG. 14 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 7. FIG. 15 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 8 for a comparative example. FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram showing a process of deployment of the airbag of this embodiment. FIG. 17 is a diagram showing the configuration of a control section. FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a processing procedure executed by the control section of a protective device. FIG. 19 is a diagram showing a state in which a protected portion and a deployment promoting section abut. FIG. 19 is a front view showing a state when the airbag of a protective device according to a second embodiment is deployed (activated state). FIG. 19 is a side view showing a state when the airbag of a protective device according to a second embodiment is deployed (activated state). FIG. 19 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state when the airbag of a third embodiment is deployed (activated state). FIG. 19 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state when the airbag of a fourth embodiment is deployed (activated state). FIG. 18 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG.

[0021] First Embodiment A protection device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the configurations and combinations thereof in each embodiment are merely examples, and additions, omissions, substitutions, and other modifications of the configurations are possible as appropriate within the scope of the present disclosure. The present disclosure is not limited by the embodiments, but is limited only by the claims. Furthermore, each aspect disclosed in this specification can be combined with any other feature disclosed in this specification.

[0022] FIG. 1 is a side view of the protective device 1. The protective device 1 includes a helmet 10 and a storage unit 40. The storage unit 40 is located at the lower edge of the rear of the helmet 10, where the back of the user's head is positioned when the helmet 10 is worn. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the interior of the storage unit. As shown in FIG. 2, the storage unit 40 includes an airbag device 20, a detection unit 30, and a control unit 50. The protective device 1 is secured to the user's head when the user wears the helmet 10, and the storage unit 40 is positioned at a predetermined position relative to the neck. The protective device 1 protects the head and neck by activating the airbag device 20 to deploy the airbag 21 around the neck when the user is subjected to an impact or when an impact to the user's body is predicted (hereinafter also referred to as an emergency), such as when the user falls or a collision becomes unavoidable. Specifically, the helmet 10 primarily protects the head, and the airbag device 20 (deployed airbag 21) primarily protects the neck.

[0023] FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view showing the state before the airbag of the protection device 1 worn by a user is deployed (pre-activation state). FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view showing the state after the airbag of the protection device 1 worn by a user is deployed (activated state). FIG. 5 is a front perspective view showing the activated state of the protection device 1 worn by a user. FIG. 6 is a side view showing the activated state of the protection device 1 worn by a user. In this specification, the up-down direction is also referred to as the Y-axis direction, the left-right direction is also referred to as the X-axis direction, and the depth (front-rear) direction is also referred to as the Z-direction. However, in this specification, the up-down direction and the X, Y, and Z-axis directions of the protection device 1 merely indicate the relative positional relationships of each element in the protection device 1 for the convenience of explaining the embodiment. For example, the posture when using the protection device 1 is not limited to the direction shown in the figure. Furthermore, the size of the protection device 1 relative to the human body is not limited to that shown in the figure.

[0024] [Helmet] The helmet 10 is worn on the user's head to protect the head from impacts. The helmet 10 has a roughly bowl-shaped shell 11 and straps 12 that secure the shell 11 to the user's head. The shell 11 is formed so as to cover at least a portion of the user's head above the eyes when worn. The shell 11 is also formed to surround the entire horizontal circumference of the head and protect from impacts from all directions. The shell 11 may have an outer shell that covers the outer peripheral surface, an impact-absorbing liner placed inside the outer shell, an interior lining placed inside the impact-absorbing liner, etc.

[0025] The strap 12 has V-shaped ear straps 121 (FIG. 1) and a chin strap 122 connected to the lower part of the ear strap 121 via a connecting part 126. While the left ear strap 121 is shown in FIG. 1, ear straps 121 and connecting parts 126 are also provided symmetrically on the right side of the helmet 10. The chin strap 122 has a left part 123 connected to the left ear strap 121 via the connecting part 126, a right part 124 connected to the right connecting part 126, and a buckle 125.

[0026] The helmet 10 is attached to the user's head by placing the cap body 11 over the user's head, passing one end of the chin strap 122 (the right side portion 124 in the example of FIG. 1 ) under the user's chin, and connecting the other end of the chin strap 122 (the left side portion 123 in the example of FIG. 1 ) with a buckle 125. The helmet 10 can be removed from the head by releasing the connection with the buckle 125 and separating the right side portion 124 and the left side portion 123 of the chin strap 122. Note that although the helmet 10 in this embodiment is a so-called half-cap type, it may have other shapes, such as a jet helmet type or a full-face type.

[0027] The storage unit 40 has a housing that stores the airbag device 20, the detection unit 30, and the control unit 50, and is provided with an openable and closable lid at the bottom of the housing. The airbag device 20 includes an airbag 21 and a gas generator 29 (corresponding to an "inflation source supply unit"). Before the protective operation of the protection device 1 is activated, the airbag 21 is stored in a folded state (contracted state) within the housing. As will be described later, when the protective operation starts and gas (fluid, corresponding to an "inflation source") is supplied from the gas generator 29 to the airbag 21, the airbag 21 begins to inflate, pushes open the lid of the storage unit 40, advances outside the storage unit, and is deployed around the user's neck.

[0028] [Airbag] Fig. 7 is a plan view showing the state of the airbag 21 when inflation is complete. As shown in Fig. 7, the airbag 21 of this embodiment includes a rear protection portion 211 that covers the rear side of the user's neck and both side portions 212, and has, for example, a U-shaped planar shape. However, the airbag 21 may have any other planar shape as long as it is configured to deploy around the neck. For example, the planar shape of the airbag 21 may be a so-called C-shape in which both side portions 212 are curved to fit around the periphery of the neck.

[0029] The rear protective portion 211 has a rear protective portion 2111 that covers at least the rear of the user's neck when the airbag 21 is fully inflated, and a gas supply path 2112 having one end connected to the rear protective portion 2111 and the other end connected to the gas generator 29.

[0030] The side portions 212 are connected to the left and right ends of the rear protective portion 2111, and when fully inflated, have a right protective portion 2121 that is on the right side of the user's neck and covers the space between the user's right lower jaw and right shoulder, and a left protective portion 2122 that is on the left side of the user's neck and covers the space between the user's left lower jaw and left shoulder. In this embodiment, the right protective portion 2121, rear protective portion 2111, and left protective portion 2122 are integrally formed to surround the user's neck and are generally U-shaped in plan view. When the end of the right protective portion 2121 and the left protective portion 2122 on both side surfaces 212 is defined as the base end and the end on the opposite side as the tip end, the tip 212R of the right protective portion 2121 and the tip 212L of the left protective portion 2122 exist independently on the left and right sides at full inflation and are deployed so as to be spaced apart in the space 41 formed by the user's lower jaw, throat, and chest at full inflation of the airbag 21. In this way, the airbag 21 of this embodiment has a space between the tip 212R of the right protective portion 2121 and the tip 212L of the left protective portion 2122 at full inflation, preventing constriction of the throat. However, this is not limiting, and the tip 212R of the right protective portion 2121 and the tip 212L of the left protective portion 2122 may be deployed so as to come into contact with each other at full inflation.

[0031] The right protection portion 2121, the rear protection portion 2111, and the left protection portion 2122 are one form of the deployment portion 210. FIG. 8 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in FIG. 7. FIG. 9 is a view showing a longitudinal cross-section similar to FIG. 8 of a comparative example. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the deployment portion 210 of this embodiment has a deployment promoting portion 2101 in a portion (hereinafter also referred to as the inner peripheral portion 210A) that comes into contact with the user's neck when deployed. In addition, the deployment portion 210 has a deployment suppressing portion 2102 in a portion other than the deployment promoting portion 2101, for example, in an outer peripheral portion 210B that is radially opposite the inner peripheral portion 210A. Furthermore, in the airbag 21 of this embodiment, the right protective portion 2121, the left protective portion 2122, and the rear protective portion 2111 each have a lower surface portion 210C that comes into contact with the shoulder of the wearer when deployed, and an upper surface portion 210D that faces the lower surface portion 210C, and the deployment suppression portion 2102 is also formed on the upper surface portion 210D and the lower surface portion 210C. In Figures 8 and 9, the reference position 2X is a virtual point that is set when the airbag 21 is designed. Furthermore, the reference line 2L in Figure 7 is shown as a line that connects the reference positions 2X along the gas supply path.

[0032] In the case of the airbag 21Q (comparative example) without the deployment promoting portion 2101, the airbag deploys radially from the reference position 2X as shown in Fig. 9, and the deployment amount LA is approximately uniform in the radial direction. On the other hand, the airbag 21 of this embodiment deploys radially from the reference position 2X as shown in Fig. 8, and the deployment amount LB of the deployment promoting portion 2101 is larger than the deployment amount LA of the deployment suppressing portion 2102.

[0033] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram showing the process of deployment of the airbag 21 of this embodiment. In Figure 10, State A shows a state in which the left protection portion 2122 of the airbag 21 is folded, i.e., a state before the protection device 1 (gas generator 29) is activated. In this embodiment, the left protection portion 2122 is folded around the reference position 2X. At this time, the airbag 21 is stored in a storage portion 40 provided at the rear of the helmet 10.

[0034] State B shows a state in which the protection device 1 is activated, gas is supplied from the gas generator 29 to the airbag 21, and the left side protection part 2122 is in the middle of deploying. As shown in state B, the left side protection part 2122 deploys in a radial direction from the reference position 2X. At this time, the left side protection part 2122 advances out of the storage part 40 provided at the rear of the helmet, and then deploys as shown in state B while moving forward on the left side of the neck.

[0035] State C is the state at the time of complete deployment, in which the left-side deployment promoting portion 2101 of the left-side protective portion 2122 deploys more than the right-side deployment suppressing portion 2102. The deployment promoting portion 2101 is provided on the circumferential surface (inner circumferential portion) close to the user's neck, and by deploying widely, it deploys to abut against the user's neck and fill the space between the lower jaw and shoulder. That is, the protective device 1 of this embodiment deploys to apply a load to the neck, which is the part to be protected, thereby ensuring neck protection. Therefore, it is possible to avoid or reduce damage to the neck caused by a large tilt of the head due to an impact received by the wearer. At this time, the value of the load applied to the part to be protected is arbitrarily set depending on the volume of the airbag 21, the amount of gas supplied from the gas generator 29, the buffer openings and relief valves provided in the airbag 21, etc. Note that while FIG. 10 shows an example in which the left-side protective portion 2122 deploys, the protective device 1 is formed symmetrically, and the right-side protective portion 2121 also deploys symmetrically to FIG. 10.

[0036] [Gas Generator] The gas generator 29 ( FIG. 2 ) is connected to the airbag 21 and is a gas generation source that supplies gas for inflation (deployment) to the airbag 21 when activated under the control of the control unit 50. The gas generator 29 generates combustion gas, for example, by burning gunpowder when activated. However, the gas generator 29 is not limited to this, and may be any device that can supply gas to deploy the airbag 21, such as a device that holds compressed gas and releases the compressed gas when activated. The gas generator 29 is one form of inflation source. The inflation source that inflates the airbag is not limited to gas, and may be a device that supplies other media, such as a liquid or foam, into the airbag 21.

[0037] [Detector] The detector 30 is a means for detecting the user's state or the state of the user's surroundings, and may include, for example, an acceleration sensor, a gyro sensor (angular velocity sensor), a positioning device, a camera, radar, LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging, Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging), a three-dimensional scanner, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, a contact sensor, or an infrared sensor. The detector 30 may detect changes in the user's state, such as when the user falls or collides with another object, or may predict that the user will be impacted. The detector 30 may also detect changes in the state of objects around the user, such as an object approaching the user and likely to collide with the user, or an object that has collided with the user. Examples of positioning devices include satellite positioning systems such as the Global Positioning System (GPS). The radar and LIDAR determine the distance to objects around the protective device 1 (user) and the moving speed of the objects.

[0038] In this embodiment, the first detection unit 30 includes an acceleration sensor 31 that detects the acceleration of the protective device 1, i.e., the acceleration of the user wearing the protective device 1. The acceleration sensor 31 detects the rate of change of velocity along a predetermined axis (e.g., three axes in the X, Y, and Z directions) as the acceleration of each axis in that direction. The acceleration sensor 31 may be a so-called six-axis sensor that also functions as a sensor for detecting angular velocity along these axes. A front camera 32 is provided in the front portion of the helmet 10 as the second detection unit 30, capturing images of the area in front of the user and inputting the captured images to the control unit 50 as information indicating the user's surroundings. The front camera 32 may also be a stereo camera that captures images of the same subject (object) using a pair of imaging units arranged at a predetermined distance (baseline length) and can detect the distance to the subject from the parallax. Furthermore, a rear camera 33 is provided in the rear portion of the storage unit 40 as the third detection unit 30, capturing images of the area behind the user and outputting the captured images to the control unit 50 as information indicating the user's surroundings. The rear camera 33 may be a stereo camera, similar to the front camera 32. The cameras 32, 33 arranged in the front and rear in this manner each capture images with an angle of view of 190 degrees or more, for example, to capture the entire surroundings around the user. In addition to the front camera 32 and the rear camera 33, a left camera facing outward on the left side of the user (e.g., the left side of the helmet 10) and a right camera facing outward on the right side of the user (e.g., the right side of the helmet 10) may be provided to capture images in the front, back, left, and right directions. Although not shown in FIGS. 1 to 6 , a detection unit 30 other than the acceleration sensor 31 and the cameras 32, 33 may also be provided.

[0039] [Control Unit] The control unit 50 acquires the detection result by the detection unit 30, and when the detection result satisfies a predetermined condition, supplies an operating current to the gas generator (fluid supply unit) 29 to burn the explosive, supply combustion gas into the airbag 21, and activates the airbag device 20 so that the airbag 21 inflates. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the configuration of the control unit 50. The control unit 50 includes a processor 51, a storage unit 52, and an input / output unit 53. The processor 51 comprehensively executes various types of arithmetic processing in the control unit 50. The processor 51 is arithmetic processing means such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), or an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array).

[0040] The storage unit 52 includes, for example, a main storage unit 521 and an auxiliary storage unit 522. The main storage unit 521 includes a main storage unit such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) or a ROM (Read Only Memory), and stores information to be processed by the processor 51, for example. The main storage unit 521 may be formed integrally with the processor 51.

[0041] The auxiliary storage unit 522 is configured from storage media such as volatile memory such as RAM, non-volatile memory such as ROM, erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), hard disk drive (HDD), removable media, etc. Note that removable media is a recording medium that can be externally attached and readable by a computer, such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory or a memory card.

[0042] The auxiliary storage unit 522 can store an operating system (OS), various programs, various tables, various databases, user data, and the like, which are used to execute the operations of the protection device 1 .

[0043] The input / output unit 53 is, for example, an interface that inputs information (detection results, etc.) from the detection unit 30 and outputs information (control signals, etc.) to the detection unit 30 or other devices. The input / output unit 53 may also be a communication module that inputs (receives) information from other devices and outputs (transmits) information to other devices. Furthermore, the input / output unit 53 may be a user interface that inputs operation information by a user using an operation button, a touch panel, etc., and outputs (displays, outputs sounds, etc.) to the user using a display, a speaker, etc.

[0044] [Protection Operation] Fig. 12 is a diagram showing a processing procedure executed by the control unit 50 of the protection device 1. The protection device 1 repeatedly executes the processing of Fig. 12 while the power is on or when a start-up instruction is received.

[0045] In step S10, the control unit 50 acquires the user's state and the surrounding state from the detection unit 30. For example, the control unit 50 acquires the user's acceleration from the acceleration sensor 31, and detects captured images of the surroundings from the front camera 32 and the rear camera 33.

[0046] In step S20, the control unit 50 analyzes the user's state and the state of the user's surroundings based on the detection results of the detection unit 30 acquired in step S10. For example, the control unit 50 obtains information indicating the user's state, such as the user's movement direction, movement speed, rate of change of acceleration per unit time (jerk), and inclination relative to the direction of gravity, based on the acceleration of each axis detected by the acceleration sensor 31. The control unit 50 also performs image processing on the images captured by the cameras 32 and 33 to extract objects present around the user and obtain the object's position, movement direction, movement speed, and other surrounding information. Furthermore, the control unit 50 may detect the user's movements, such as whether the user is walking, sitting, running, riding a bicycle, or standing still, based on the images captured by the cameras 32 and 33. Since known techniques can be used to obtain the position, speed, movement direction, and other information of an object from the captured images, detailed description thereof will be omitted. The position, speed, and movement direction of an object may be obtained not only by the cameras 32 and 33 but also by radar, LIDAR, a three-dimensional scanner, or a combination thereof.

[0047] In step S30, the control unit 50 determines whether to activate the protection device 1 based on whether the information indicating the user's condition and the surrounding conditions obtained in step S20 satisfies predetermined conditions. For example, if the user collides with something or receives an impact due to a collision with a vehicle, the impact is detected as a sudden change in acceleration. Furthermore, because the jerk obtained in step S20 exceeds a predetermined threshold, the control unit 50 determines that the user has received an impact and determines to activate the protection device 1 (a positive determination). Furthermore, if the user falls, the user's head (protection device 1) falls downward at an acceleration similar to free fall. At this time, downward movement at an acceleration exceeding the predetermined threshold is determined in step S20, and the control unit 50 determines that the head may be impacted. Furthermore, based on the object's position, movement direction, movement speed, etc. obtained in step S20, if the user's position and the position of a surrounding object match after a predetermined time, i.e., if the object will collide with the user, the control unit 50 makes a positive determination. These conditions and thresholds may be configurable by user operation. Alternatively, when a vehicle or the like is moving toward a user, a positive determination may be made if it is predicted that a collision is unavoidable, taking into account the vehicle's speed, acceleration, traveling direction, etc. Here, the control unit 50 may determine whether the protection device 1 is attached to the user based on the detection result of the detection unit 30, such as a contact sensor or an infrared sensor, and if the protection device 1 is not attached, may not activate the protection device 1 regardless of whether an impact has occurred. Also, based on the detection result of the detection unit 30, such as a positioning device or an acceleration sensor, it may determine whether the protection device 1 (user) is moving, and if the user is not moving, may not activate the protection device 1.

[0048] If the determination in step S30 is affirmative, the control unit 50 proceeds to step S40 and supplies an operating current to the gas generator (fluid supply unit) 29. This burns the explosive, supplies combustion gas into the airbag 21, and deploys the airbag 21, i.e., activates the protection device 1. At this time, the protection device 1 of this embodiment deploys the airbag 21 so that the amount of deployment from the reference position of the deployment promoting portion 2101 of the deployment portion 210 of the airbag 21 is greater than the amount of deployment of portions other than the deployment promoting portion (e.g., the deployment suppressing portion 2102). For example, if the base fabric constituting the deployment suppressing portion 2102 is formed from a material that is less stretchable (a material with low elasticity) and the base fabric constituting the deployment promoting portion 2101 is formed from a material that is more stretchable (a material with high elasticity) than the deployment suppressing portion 2102, the deployment promoting portion 2101 will deploy more even when the same pressure is applied. That is, when the airbag 21 deploys, the deployment amount per unit time of the deployment promoting portion 2101 becomes larger than the deployment amount of the deployment suppressing portion 2102. Alternatively, the deployment promoting portion 2101 and the deployment suppressing portion 2102 may be formed from the same material, and the deployment promoting portion 2101 may be formed thinner than the deployment suppressing portion 2102, so that the deployment promoting portion 2101 deploys more even when the same pressure is applied.

[0049] If the information indicating the user's state and the surrounding state does not satisfy the predetermined conditions and a negative determination is made in step S30, the processing of FIG. 12 ends.

[0050] <<Function and Effect>> Figure 13 is a diagram showing the state of contact between the protection target and the deployment promoting portion. In Figure 13, reference numeral 92 indicates the user's neck (protection target). State A in Figure 13 shows the state of contact when the neck is thin, and state B shows the state of contact when the neck is thick. As described above, the protection device 1 of this embodiment has the deployment promoting portion 2101 on the inner side of the airbag 21, and has a larger deployment amount than the deployment suppressing portion 2102. Therefore, even if the user's neck is thin, the deployment promoting portion 2101 can contact the neck and apply a load, thereby accurately protecting the user's neck. Note that if the airbag 21 is configured not to contact the user's neck and not to apply a load to the neck, the airbag 21 may move with the movement of the user's head (helmet 10) in the event of a collision, causing the airbag 21 to shift position, potentially resulting in inadequate protection of the user's neck. In contrast, in the protection device 1 of this embodiment, the deployment promoting portion 2101 comes into contact with the neck and applies a load, thereby preventing the airbag 21 from shifting position and enabling the user's neck to be protected appropriately.

[0051] Furthermore, if the user has a thick neck, the deployment accelerating portion 2101 bends and contacts the user's neck, as shown in state B, to protect the user's neck. In this case, if the deployment amount is small, as in the case of the deployment suppressing portion 2102, the airbag 21 is less likely to bend after deployment, and the load on the neck is likely to be large. In contrast, in the protective device 1 of this embodiment, the deployment accelerating portion 2101 that contacts the user's neck is large. Therefore, even if the user has a thick neck, the deflection makes it easier to ensure clearance for the airbag 21 (inner peripheral portion 210A). This prevents the load on the neck from becoming too large, thereby enabling the user's neck to be adequately protected. Note that if the entire deployment portion 210 of the airbag 21 were to deploy, the amount of gas required for deployment would increase, resulting in an increase in the size of the device. For this reason, the protective device 1 of this embodiment provides the deployment accelerating portion 2101 in a portion of the airbag 21 and the deployment suppressing portion 2102 in the remaining portion, thereby reducing the amount of gas required to deploy the airbag 21 and achieving a smaller device. In both State A and State B, holding the user's neck reduces damage to the neck caused by bending of the neck (movement of the head) when the user receives an impact. Therefore, the airbag 21 can be deployed to fill the gap between the user's lower jaws and shoulders. Therefore, if the deployment promoting portion 2101 is formed only on the inner peripheral portion 210A of the airbag 21, an airbag that is thick in the height direction (Y direction) when deployment is complete may be used.

[0052] In the protection device 1 of this embodiment, the deployment suppressing portions 2102 are provided on the outer peripheral portion 210B, the lower surface portion 210C, and the upper surface portion 210D of the airbag 21, and the deployment promoting portion 2101 is provided on the inner peripheral portion 210A, but the configuration is not limited to this, and the deployment suppressing portions 2102 may be provided only on the outer peripheral portion 210B, or only on the outer peripheral portion 210B and the lower surface portion 210C. Note that when deployment promoting portions are present in multiple locations, differences may be made in the amount of deployment (amount of deployment per unit time) or the stretch of the base fabric between the deployment promoting portions.

[0053] Second Embodiment Fig. 14 is a front view showing a state in which the airbag 21 of the protection device 1A according to the second embodiment is deployed (activated state), and Fig. 15 is a side view showing a state in which the airbag 21 of the protection device 1A according to the second embodiment is deployed (activated state). The protection device 1A of this embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that a deployment promoting portion 2101 is provided on a lower surface portion 210C of the airbag 21, and deployment suppressing portions 2102 are provided on an upper surface portion 210D, an inner peripheral portion 210A, and an outer peripheral portion 210B. The other configurations are the same. For this reason, the same elements as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repeated description will be omitted.

[0054] As shown in Figures 14 and 15, the protective device 1A of this embodiment has a deployment promoting portion 2101 on the lower surface 210C of the airbag 21. In particular, the deployment promoting portions 2101 on the front and rear sides of the airbag 21 are more flexible than the deployment promoting portion 2101 formed in the center, allowing these front and rear deployment promoting portions 2101 to deploy significantly downward. The central deployment promoting portion 2101 also deploys from the user's lower chin toward the shoulders, supporting the head by lifting the lower chin on both sides of the neck, thereby protecting the neck. Because the airbag 21 fits into the space between the chin and shoulders, the airbag 21 itself does not shift out of position. To deploy the airbag 21 in the neck direction, deployment suppressing portions 2102 can be provided on the upper surface 210D and outer peripheral portion 210B, and deployment promoting portions 2101 can be provided on the inner peripheral portion 210A and lower surface 210C. Furthermore, when the protective device 1A of this embodiment is activated, the deployment promoting portion 2101 of the airbag 21 deploys to sandwich the user's shoulders from the front and back, further suppressing misalignment of the airbag 21, thereby enabling the user's neck (the part to be protected) to be adequately protected.

[0055] 16 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which an airbag 21 according to a third embodiment is deployed (activated state). This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that a tether 215 is provided inside the airbag 21 and the amount of deployment of the deployment suppression portion 2102 is limited by the tether 215, but the other configurations are the same. For this reason, the same elements as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and a repeated description will be omitted.

[0056] As shown in FIG. 16 , in this embodiment, one end of the tether 215 is connected to the inner surface of the rear portion of the airbag, and the other end of the tether 215 is connected to the inner surface of the outer peripheral portion 210B. The tether 215 has a lower degree of elasticity than the base fabric constituting the deployment promoting portion 2101 and limits the amount of deployment of the deployment suppressing portion 2102 to a predetermined amount. In other words, the length and elasticity of the tether 215 determine the amount of deployment of the deployment suppressing portion 2102, limiting the deployment of the deployment suppressing portion 2102 so that it does not deploy more than necessary. As described above, according to this embodiment, the protection device 1 not only adequately protects the protected portion, but also limits the amount of deployment of the deployment suppressing portion 2102, thereby reducing the amount of gas required for deployment and enabling the device to be made more compact. Note that this embodiment may be configured such that the tether 215 is provided inside the airbag 21 of the protection device 1A of the second embodiment to limit the amount of deployment of the deployment suppressing portion 2102.

[0057] <Fourth embodiment> Fig. 17 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an airbag 21 according to a fourth embodiment in a deployed state (activated state), and Fig. 18 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view taken along line B-B in Fig. 17. This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that a gas introduction section 217 (corresponding to an "inflation source introduction section") is provided in the airbag 21 to supply gas preferentially to the deployment promoting section 2101, but the other configurations are the same. For this reason, the same elements as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repeated description will be omitted.

[0058] The gas introduction section 217 is a tubular member formed from the same base fabric as the deployment section 210, and is folded together with the deployment section 210 before activation. The gas introduction section 217 is arranged within the airbag 21 from the rear protective section 2111 along each of the right protective section 2121 and the left protective section 2122. The gas introduction section 217 also includes an opening 2171 provided toward the deployment promoting section 2101 and an opening 2172 provided toward a portion other than the deployment promoting section 2101. The number of openings 2171, 2172 is not particularly limited. When a plurality of openings 2171, 2172 are provided, the openings 2171, 2172 may be provided at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal direction of the right protective section 2121 or the left protective section 2122, for example.

[0059] The opening 2171 has a higher degree of opening than the opening 2172, and supplies gas preferentially to the opening 2171. The degree of opening of the opening 2171 can be set higher by making the opening area per opening 2171 larger than that of the opening 2172, or by forming a group of openings closely spaced one another and making the group of openings 2171 have a larger number of openings, or by a combination of these. That is, the deployment promoting portion 2101 of this embodiment is formed at a position where it will be hit by the gas supplied from the opening 2171 when gas from the gas generator 29 is inserted into the airbag 21, and the gas is supplied preferentially. As a result, the deployment amount per unit time of the deployment promoting portion 2101 is larger than the deployment amount of the deployment suppressing portion 2102, and the deployment promoting portion 2101 can be deployed quickly and appropriately protect the protected portion.

[0060] <Others> The protection device of the present application is not limited to the configurations of the above-described embodiments and modifications. For example, the above-described elements can be combined or some elements can be omitted, and other modifications can be made as appropriate.

[0061] 1, 1A: Protective device 2L: Reference line 2X: Reference position 10: Helmet 11: Cap body 12: Strap 20: Airbag device 21: Airbag 29: Gas generator 30: Detecting unit (first to third detecting units) 31: Acceleration sensor 32: Front camera 33: Rear camera 40: Storage unit 50: Control unit 51: Processor 52: Memory unit 53: Input / output unit 121: Ear straps 122: Chin strap 123: Left side portion 124: Right side portion 125: Buckle 126: Connecting portion 210: Deployment portion 210A: Inner peripheral portion 210B: Outer peripheral portion 210C: Lower surface portion 210D: Upper surface portion 211: Rear protective portion 212: Both side surfaces 215: Tether 217: Gas introduction portion 521: Main memory unit 522: Auxiliary storage section 2101: Deployment promoting section 2102: Deployment suppressing section 2111: Rear protection section 2112: Gas supply path 2121: Right side protection section 2122: Left side protection section 2171: Opening 2172: Opening

Claims

1. A protective device comprising: an airbag that inflates and unfolds from a folded state to protect a part to be protected; and an inflation source that inflates the airbag, wherein the airbag has a deployment section that deploys from a reference position, and a deployment promoting section in part of the deployment section, and the amount of deployment of the deployment promoting section from the reference position is greater than the amount of deployment of the part of the deployment section other than the deployment promoting section.

2. The protection device according to claim 1, wherein the airbag is configured to be worn by a wearer, the deployment portion deploys around the part to be protected that is a part of the wearer, and the deployment promotion portion applies a load to the part to be protected during or after the airbag is deployed.

3. A protective device as described in claim 1, wherein the deployment portion deploys radially from the reference position, the deployment promoting portion is formed on at least a portion of the airbag in the radial direction, and the airbag has a deployment suppressing portion in a portion other than the deployment promoting portion that suppresses the amount of deployment more than the deployment promoting portion.

4. A protective device as described in claim 3, wherein the airbag has the neck of the wearer as the protected area, the airbag is U-shaped with a right protective section covering the right side of the neck, a left protective section covering the left side of the neck, and a rear protective section covering the rear side of the neck integrated together, the right protective section, the left protective section, and the rear protective section each have an inner circumferential section that comes into contact with the neck when deployed and an outer circumferential section that is radially opposite the inner circumferential section, and the deployment suppression section is formed on the outer circumferential section.

5. A protection device according to claim 4, wherein the deployment suppressing portion is formed on the inner peripheral portion in addition to the outer peripheral portion.

6. A protective device as described in claim 4, wherein each of the right protective section, the left protective section, and the rear protective section has a lower surface that contacts the wearer's shoulder when deployed, and an upper surface that faces the lower surface, and the deployment suppressing section is also formed on the upper and lower surfaces.

7. The protection device according to claim 3, wherein the amount of deployment per unit time of the deployment promoting portion when the airbag deploys is greater than the amount of deployment of the deployment suppressing portion.

8. A protection device according to any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein the base fabric constituting the deployment promoting portion of the airbag has a greater stretch than the base fabric constituting the deployment suppressing portion.

9. A protective device as claimed in any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein the airbag is provided with a tether attached to the deployment suppression section, the tether having a smaller degree of elasticity than the base fabric constituting the deployment promotion section, and limits the amount of deployment of the deployment suppression section to within a predetermined amount.

10. A protective device as set forth in any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein the deployment promoting portion is formed at a position that will preferentially contact the inflation source when the inflation source is inserted into the airbag.

11. A protective device as described in claim 4, wherein an inflation source supply section that supplies the inflation source, the airbag before deployment, and an inflation source introduction section that introduces the inflation source from the inflation source supply section into the airbag are provided in a helmet worn by a wearer, and the inflation source introduction section is connected to the right protective section and the left protective section of the airbag, respectively.

12. A method for deploying an airbag, comprising: a step of supplying an inflation source to an airbag in a folded state; a step of deploying a deployment portion of the airbag from a reference position using the inflation source; and a step of making the amount of deployment from the reference position of a deployment promotion portion that is part of the deployment portion greater than the amount of deployment of a portion of the deployment portion other than the deployment promotion portion.

Images