Land vehicles – Wheeled – Attachment
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-16
2001-05-15
Olszewski, Robert P. (Department: 2167)
Land vehicles
Wheeled
Attachment
C280S743100, C280S741000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06231069
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air bag apparatus which expands in an instant for protecting a passenger of an automobile at the time of collision of the automobile, especially at the time of a side-on crash in which other automobile crashes into a side of the automobile.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional air bag apparatus will be described hereinafter.
In a gas bag-type side collision protecting apparatus, a bag body is normally folded and accommodated in a housing in a seat back. An inflator is arranged at a position facing a gas inlet port of the bag body, and is ignited by a signal of a shock detecting sensor at the time of the side-on crash of the automobile to generate gas. Gas is introduced through the gas inlet port into the bag body to expand the bag body. The bag body expands forward from the seat back, and is developed in a space between the passenger and a side wall in the passenger's room. A shock generated when the passenger secondary collides against a side wall of the passenger's room is absorbed by the bag body (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No.
9-123864
, for example).
The bag body is divided into a portion supporting the head of the passenger and a portion supporting the chest of the passenger, or is integrally formed, so that gas discharged by the inflator is charged into the bag body in a short time.
It is experimentally confirmed that the behavior of the secondary collision of the passenger at the time of the side-on crash is such that the chest of the passenger strongly collides against the side wall in the passenger room such as to lash around waist, and subsequently, the head of the passenger strongly collides against the side wall in the passenger room.
However, with the structure of such an air bag apparatus, since gas discharged by the inflator is at a high temperature, it is necessary that the bag body into which the high temperature gas is charged can withstand such a high temperature, and which is one cause for increasing the costs , and the improvement thereof is required.
Further, if the bag body expands on at least a wearing track of the shoulder belt among the wearing track of the seat belt comprising the shoulder belt and lap belt for binding the chest and waist of the passenger sitting on the seat back, the belt is pushed, and there is an undesirable possibility that the webbing of the belt may be separated from the passenger. Further, the expansion of the bag body may be hindered by the belt, an improvement of this point is also required.
Furthermore, it is necessary to provide the bag body with means for guiding a flow of gas into the head supporting portion and the chest supporting portion of the bag body, and which is one cause for increasing the costs, and the improvement thereof is required.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide an air bag apparatus in which it is unnecessary to take measures to cope with a body of high temperature gas charged into the bag body, or simple measures suffice to cope with high temperature gas.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an air bag apparatus for allowing gas to flow into the head supporting portion of the bag body smoothly and inexpensively without deteriorating the wearing track of the seat belt even if the bag body expands.
To achieve the above objectives, according to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an air bag apparatus comprising: an inflator which has a first port for discharging gas when a shock detecting sensor detects a shock more than a predetermined value; a L-shape air bag body which has a head supporting portion of a passenger and a chest supporting portion thereof, and which is unfolded and expanded by discharged gas; and a cylindrical holder which covers the inflator, is formed with a wall for receiving discharged gas which is opposed to the first port of the inflator, and has a second port for discharging received gas to a vicinity of a bottom of the chest supporting portion of the air bag body.
With this configuration, when the inflator is ignited and high temperature gas is discharged through the first port, gas collides against the wall of the holder formed in a position opposed to the first port so that the wall absorbs heat from the gas and the gas is cooled. The gas is further cooled while passing through between the inflator and the holder, and the gas is lowered at temperature and is discharged toward the air bag body through the second port of the holder. Therefore, it is unnecessary to take measures to cope with high temperature gas charged into the bag body, or simple measures suffice to cope with high temperature gas and thus, the cost price can be lowered.
Further, since gas is discharged toward the vicinity of the bottom of the chest supporting portion in the air bag body, the bag body expands while avoiding the wearing track of a seat belt and therefore, the bag body does not prevent wearing movement of the seat belt.
Furthermore, since gas smoothly flows from the chest supporting portion of the bag body to the head supporting portion, a member for guiding gas to the head supporting portion is unnecessary and thus, the cost price is lowered correspondingly.
In a preferable embodiment, the inflator has an upper portion and a lower portion, the inflator is provided with the first port in the upper portion thereof, and the holder is provided with the second port in a position corresponding to the lower portion of the inflator.
With this configuration, since the first port of the inflator is provided in the upper portion of the inflator, gas contacts with the holder and is cooled while flowing between the first port of the inflator and the second port of the holder, and the temperature of the gas is lowered. Therefore, it is unnecessary to take measures to cope with the air bag body at high temperature, or it is possible to take a simple measures suffice to cope with the bag body at high temperature and thus, the cost price can be lowered.
Further, since the flow direction of gas from the first port to the second port is downward, it is easy to charge gas to the chest supporting portion of the bag body as it is.
In a preferable embodiment, discharged gas through the second port flows while curving into a substantially L-shape from the vicinity of the bottom of the chest supporting portion toward the head supporting portion.
With this configuration, since gas reaching the air bag body through the first port of the inflator and the second port of the holder can flow while curving into a substantially L-shape from the vicinity of the bottom of the chest supporting portion toward the head supporting portion, the track of the seat belt, especially of the shoulder belt is not hindered consequently and the shoulder belt should not be separated from the upper part of the passenger's body.
In another preferable embodiment, the inflator is supported substantially vertically by a seat back, the inflator has a gas generating chamber and a cooling chamber disposed above the gas generating chamber, and the first port is formed in the cooling chamber.
With this configuration, since the inflator is supported substantially vertically by the seat back along the seat back, a volume of a side portion of the seat back is not occupied so much, and the difficulty of mounting the inflator to the seat back is lowered. Further, utilizing the fact that the inflator is cylindrical in shape as a measure for lowering the temperature of discharged gas, gas can be cooled appropriately even if a special cooling means is not provided, the cost price is not increased.
In a preferable embodiment, the chest supporting portion of the bag body is expanded and developed while being guided by a vehicle member.
With this configuration, gas discharged by the inflator is discharged in a slightly downward rather than a horizontal direction. Therefore, the gas pressure is sufficiently applied to the chest supporting portion of the bag
Jasmin Lynda
Nihon Plast Co. Ltd.
Olszewski Robert P.
Stockton Kilpatrick
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