Vehicle Seat Skin Reinforcement for Side Airbag Load Concentration

The patent applies local quality by providing low-elasticity reinforcement parts at specific locations on the skin member, particularly at the weakened sutured part area. These reinforcement parts have different elastic properties compared to the surrounding skin member material, creating localized stiffness that guides the airbag expansion load toward the intended rupture point while allowing controlled tearing at the weakened part.

The patent changes the elastic parameter of the skin member by incorporating low-elasticity reinforcement parts with specifically controlled elastic moduli. These reinforcement parts have lower elasticity than the main skin member material, creating a gradient in elastic properties that directs the stress concentration to the weakened sutured part during airbag deployment, ensuring reliable and predictable tearing behavior.

The patent segments the skin member into distinct functional zones: the weakened sutured part with low-elasticity reinforcement for prompt rupture, and other areas with different elastic properties for controlled expansion. This segmentation allows the airbag to expand in multiple directions while ensuring the sutured part fails first as intended, combining speed of rupture with directional control.

The patent addresses directional control by adding dimensional constraints through strategically placed low-elasticity reinforcement parts that extend in specific orientations. These reinforcements create anisotropic mechanical properties, allowing the skin member to expand freely in some directions while providing resistance in others, thus guiding the airbag deployment path without compromising rupture speed at the sutured part.

The low-elasticity reinforcement parts serve multiple functions simultaneously: they reinforce the skin member structure to prevent unwanted tearing, guide the airbag expansion load toward the weakened sutured part, and control the expansion direction. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity while achieving reliable load concentration.

The patent merges the reinforcement function with the load-guiding function by integrating low-elasticity reinforcement parts directly into the skin member structure. These reinforcement parts are combined with the weakened sutured part design, creating a unified system where the same structural elements that provide reinforcement also serve to direct the airbag load, simplifying the overall design compared to using separate reinforcement and guiding components.