Vehicle Seat Side Airbag with Partitioned Chambers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle seat side airbag systems face delays in occupant movement towards the center during side collisions due to delayed gas supply to auxiliary airbags and difficulty in mounting airbags with narrow gaps between the outer side frame and the seated occupant.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle seat side airbag apparatus with an inflator attached to the center of the outer side frame, featuring a partitioned side airbag with a rear chamber that inflates and deploys faster than the front chamber, and an enclosing member with a weak portion to facilitate easy deployment and mounting, utilizing a tether or sewn partition for improved occupant protection and space efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the inflator is disposed outward of the outer side frame in the seat-width direction, then the auxiliary airbag can be supplied with gas, but the supply of gas into the auxiliary airbag is delayed
Solution Approach 1:
The inflator is inverted from its conventional position outward of the outer side frame to a position inward of the outer side frame in the seat-width direction. This inversion allows the inflator to be disposed on the center side of the outer side frame, enabling direct gas supply to the auxiliary airbag without delay, thereby resolving the contradiction between reliable gas supply and rapid occupant movement.
Solution Approach 2:
The side airbag is configured to straddle the outer side frame from the vehicle front side in the vehicle-width direction, with the front chamber folded outward and the rear chamber containing the inflator positioned inward. This spatial reconfiguration in multiple dimensions allows the inflator to be accessible while maintaining compact mounting in narrow gaps.
2Speed
If the folded side airbag is stored together with the inflator inward of the outer side frame in the seat-width direction, then the gas supply is rapid, but it is difficult to mount the side airbag in the seat back with narrow gap
Solution Approach 1:
The side airbag is segmented into a front chamber and a rear chamber by a partition portion. The front chamber is folded outward of the outer side frame while the rear chamber with the inflator is positioned inward. This segmentation allows the airbag to be mounted in narrow gaps by utilizing space on both sides of the outer side frame, resolving the contradiction between rapid gas supply and ease of mounting.
Solution Approach 2:
The side airbag utilizes the vehicle-width direction dimension by straddling the outer side frame, with portions extending both inward and outward. This multi-dimensional spatial arrangement enables compact mounting in narrow gaps while maintaining rapid gas supply capability.
3Ease of manufacture
If the side airbag is configured to straddle the outer side frame with front chamber folded outward, then mounting in narrow gap is facilitated, but the partition structure becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The partition portion is extracted as a separate functional element that can be implemented as a tether or sewn partition within the side airbag. This simplifies the overall structure by separating the partitioning function from the main airbag body, making the straddling configuration easier to manufacture and install while reducing structural complexity.
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
The solution enables rapid movement of occupants towards the center during side collisions, improves mounting efficiency in narrow gaps, and enhances occupant protection by distributing the force effectively across the chest, abdomen, and waist, while maintaining a compact airbag configuration.
Implementation Method 1
The inflator is operated... The rear chamber of the side airbag having the inflator stored therein then inflates and deploys faster at a higher pressure than the front chamber
Implementation Method 2
The rear chamber of the side airbag having the inflator stored therein then inflates and deploys faster at a higher pressure than the front chamber while receiving a reaction force toward the center side in the vehicle-width direction from the outer side frame so as to press the seated occupant toward the center side in the vehicle-width direction
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle seat includes an outer side frame, an inflator, and a side airbag including a front chamber and a rear chamber. The inflator is configured such that the rear chamber inflates and deploys faster at a higher pressure than a front chamber, and the side airbag is stored in a side portion in a state in which the side airbag straddles the outer side frame from a vehicle front side in a vehicle-width direction and a portion of the side airbag including the front chamber is folded outward of the outer side frame in the vehicle-width direction.