Extendable Seat Airbag Structure for Occupant Height Adaptation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Side airbags currently lack the ability to effectively control the kinematics of occupants of varying sizes during vehicle impacts, as their design does not accommodate differences in occupant height, potentially leading to inadequate protection for both taller and shorter individuals.
Innovation Solution
The airbag assembly includes a main chamber and an extension that can be selectively extended based on the occupant's size, with a releasable tether and upper segment that adjust to increase the extension's distance from the main chamber, ensuring optimal kinematic control for occupants of different heights by translating along the seatback.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the airbag uses a fixed design, then the structure is simple, but it cannot effectively control the kinematics of occupants of varying sizes
Solution Approach 1:
The airbag is divided into a main chamber and an extension that can be selectively deployed. The extension includes an upper segment that can be separated from the lower segment, allowing the airbag to adapt its configuration to different occupant sizes while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The airbag incorporates a dynamically adjustable extension that can be deployed or retracted based on occupant detection. The upper segment can be selectively separated or connected to the lower segment, enabling the airbag to adapt its position and shape to accommodate occupants of varying heights and sizes.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the airbag extension is always extended, then it provides coverage for taller occupants, but it increases complexity and may not optimize protection for shorter occupants
Solution Approach 1:
The airbag system pre-configures the extension with a releasable connection between the upper and lower segments. Upon deployment, the system can selectively separate these segments based on occupant size detection, allowing the extension to achieve optimal positioning for different occupants without requiring complex real-time adjustment mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
A releasable tether or connection mechanism serves as an intermediary between the upper and lower segments of the extension. This intermediary allows the segments to be selectively connected or separated based on occupant characteristics, providing adaptive coverage while maintaining structural simplicity through a single integrated design.
3Reliability
If the airbag is designed for a single occupant size, then the design is simple, but it provides inadequate protection for both taller and shorter individuals
Solution Approach 1:
The airbag design incorporates a universal main chamber that can work with different extension configurations. The extension's upper and lower segments can be selectively connected or separated to accommodate various occupant sizes, allowing a single airbag design to effectively protect occupants across a range of heights and sizes.
Solution Approach 2:
The airbag system changes its physical configuration parameters by selectively deploying or retracting the extension and separating or connecting the upper and lower segments. These parameter changes allow the airbag to adapt its shape, volume, and position to optimize protection effectiveness for occupants of different sizes without requiring multiple different airbag designs.
Data Source
AI summary
An assembly including a vehicle seat. The assembly includes an airbag supported by the vehicle seat and inflatable to an inflated position. The airbag includes a main chamber elongated along an axis and an extension supported by the main chamber. The extension extends from the main chamber transverse to the axis in the inflated position. The main chamber includes a lower segment and an upper segment selectively extendable away from the lower segment along the axis from an unreleased position to a released position. The extension is supported by the upper segment of the main chamber and the extension is translatable along the axis with the main chamber from the unreleased position to the released position.