Airbag Retainer Elastic Support for Inflator Insertion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional airbag devices face challenges in easily assembling the inflator with the retainer while ensuring sufficient support, as the supporting projections may protrude too much or not enough, affecting ease of insertion and stability.
Innovation Solution
The airbag device incorporates an elastically deformable support region and a supporting projection within the retainer's holding section, allowing for smooth insertion and stable support of the inflator, with the elastically deformable region deforming to accommodate the inflator and the supporting projection providing additional rigidity for secure positioning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If supporting projections are made to protrude more, then the support property of the retainer is improved, but the ease of insertion of the inflator into the retainer deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The support region is designed with elastic deformability, allowing it to dynamically adjust its shape during insertion. When the inflator is being inserted, the elastic support region deforms to accommodate the inflator, reducing insertion resistance. Once insertion is complete, the elastic region maintains a deformed state that provides adequate support, thus resolving the contradiction between ease of insertion and support property.
Solution Approach 2:
The support region's physical parameters (shape, rigidity) are changed based on the operational stage. During insertion, the support region has higher deformability to facilitate easy insertion. After insertion, the same support region maintains a different physical state (elastically deformed) to provide sufficient support. This parameter change allows the same structure to satisfy both contradictory requirements at different times.
2Ease of operation
If supporting projections are made to protrude less, then the ease of insertion of the inflator into the retainer is improved, but the support property of the retainer deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The support region transitions from a rigid pre-insertion state to an elastically deformed post-insertion state. This dynamic transformation allows the support region to start with minimal protrusion (facilitating easy insertion) and end with adequate support (maintaining reliability). The elasticity enables this state transition without requiring a separate mechanism.
3Stability of the object's composition
If multiple supporting regions are spaced apart in the axial direction, then the stability of the inflator in the retainer is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The support function is segmented into multiple support regions spaced apart axially. Each support region independently contacts the inflator at different axial positions, providing distributed support that enhances stability. This segmentation approach achieves stable positioning without requiring complex mechanical structures, as each segment is a simple elastic region that can be integrated into the retainer body.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration facilitates easy assembly of the inflator with the retainer and ensures adequate support, preventing axial inclination and gas leakage, while reducing manufacturing costs by integrating the elastically deformable support region during retainer production.
Implementation Method 1
an elastically deformable support region... configured to elastically deform and be brought into abutment against an outer circumference of the inflator when the inflator is inserted into the holding section
Data Source
AI summary
An airbag device includes an airbag, an inflator and a retainer. The retainer includes a generally tubular holding section for holding the inflator therein and mounting means which protrudes out of the holding section in a direction generally perpendicular to an axis of the inflator to be mounted on a vehicle body member in order to mount the airbag and the inflator on the vehicle body member. The holding section includes an elastically deformable support region which has been elastically deformed and brought into abutment against an outer circumference of the inflator when the inflator was inserted into the holding section, and supports the inflator in the elastically deformed state at an inner side of the holding section, and a supporting projection which has higher rigidity than the elastically deformable support region and abuts against the outer circumference of the inflator at the inner side of the holding section.