Airbag Coupling Device for Cowl Cross Bar
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing airbag coupling mechanism with a cowl cross bar is complex, unstable, and prone to noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH), leading to potential misdeployment and deformation or breakage of the instrument panel during airbag inflation.
Innovation Solution
A safety apparatus featuring a coupling device with spaced mounting brackets, mounting blocks, and support members that securely attach the airbag device to the cowl cross bar, ensuring stable deployment and reducing noise and vibration through a fitting scheme that includes injection-molded fitting members and bolts, providing a strong support structure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a mounting bracket is used to couple the airbag device with the cowl cross bar, then the airbag device can be installed, but the coupling work becomes complex and requires multiple components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the mounting bracket and support structure into an integrated coupling device. The coupling device includes a mounting bracket with integrated support members that directly engage with the cowl cross bar, eliminating the need for separate mounting blocks and coupling members. This merging of functions simplifies the assembly process while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling device is divided into functional segments: a mounting bracket portion for attachment to the cowl cross bar, and support member portions that extend to support the airbag device. This segmentation allows each part to perform its specific function efficiently while being part of a unified structure, reducing the number of separate components needed.
2Device complexity
If a simple mounting bracket is used, then the coupling structure is simplified, but the support stability becomes insufficient causing airbag movement during inflation
Solution Approach 1:
The coupling device incorporates adjustable support members that can adapt to different installation positions and angles. The support members are designed to flex slightly during airbag inflation to accommodate the expansion force while maintaining positional stability, allowing the structure to dynamically respond to operational stresses without compromising support integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling device uses composite construction with rigid mounting bracket portions for structural strength and slightly flexible support member portions that can absorb inflation forces. This composite approach combines materials or structural configurations with different mechanical properties to achieve both simplicity and stability.
3Device complexity
If a weak support structure is used, then the coupling device is simpler, but noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) problems occur
Solution Approach 1:
The support members act as intermediary elements between the rigid mounting bracket and the airbag device. These intermediaries absorb and dampen vibrations and noises generated during airbag inflation, preventing them from transmitting to the vehicle structure. The support members are designed with damping characteristics that reduce NVH while maintaining structural simplicity.
4Ease of manufacture
If an unstable coupling structure is used, then the assembly is easier, but the instrument panel may be deformed or broken during airbag deployment
Solution Approach 1:
The coupling device is pre-assembled and pre-positioned on the cowl cross bar before airbag installation. The support members are pre-adjusted to the correct height and angle, ensuring proper alignment and stable support from the moment of airbag deployment. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need for complex adjustments during final assembly while guaranteeing structural integrity during operation.
Data Source
AI summary
A safety apparatus for a vehicle includes a coupling device to couple an airbag device with a cowl cross bar. The coupling device includes a plurality of mounting brackets coupled with the cowl cross bar while being spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, mounting b locks coupled with the mounting brackets, and fitting members protruding from an outer bottom surface of the housing and fitted on the mounting blocks.