Land vehicles – Wheeled – Attachment
Reexamination Certificate
1998-12-10
2001-08-21
Dickson, Paul N. (Department: 3618)
Land vehicles
Wheeled
Attachment
C280S729000, C280S743200
Reexamination Certificate
active
06276716
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an air bag system that restrains a vehicle occupant upon a collision of a motor vehicle, for example, so as to protect the vehicle occupant from an impact applied to the vehicle body, and in particular to such an air bag system that is able to restrain the vehicle occupant with high efficiency, and a method of controlling the air bag system.
An air bag system for a motor vehicle as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,308,113 has been known which includes an inflatable bag, and an inflation-controlling member that is coupled to the bag and serves to control inflation of the bag.
More specifically, a releasable connection of the inflation-controlling member remains intact during initial stages of the inflation process of the bag, so that the inflation-controlling member extends to its initial length, thereby to restrict inflation of the bag. The releasable connection releases during intermediate stages of the inflation process of the bag, so that the inflation-controlling member extends to its intermediate length, and the bag assumes an intermediate shape. A stretchable section of the inflation-controlling member then stretches during the final stages of the inflation process, so that the inflation-controlling member extends to its final length, and the bag assumes a final shape.
With this arrangement, the air bag is able to protect a vehicle occupant who is seated at a location other than a nominal seated position, and also permits the bag and the vehicle occupant to softly or flexibly contact with each other when he/she is seated at the nominal position.
In the known air bag system, however, the vehicle occupant who is seated at the nominal position is restricted and protected by the bag that has inflated to its full size in the final stages, and therefore the maximum amount of gas is always supplied to the bag upon its inflation. Where the vehicle occupant is wearing a seat belt, therefore, the bag that has inflated to its full size may undesirably apply an excessively large restraining force to the chest of the vehicle occupant.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an air bag system wherein the capability of an air bag to restrain the vehicle occupant is changed depending upon whether the occupant is wearing a seat belt or not, so that the air bag can restrain the vehicle occupant with improved efficiency, to thus protect the occupant from an impact upon a collision of the vehicle. It is another object of the invention to provide a method of controlling such an air bag system.
To accomplish the above object, the present invention provides an air bag system for a motor vehicle, comprising: an inflator that is installed on the motor vehicle; a control device that causes the inflator to emit gas when an impact that is greater than a predetermined value is applied to a vehicle body of the motor vehicle; an air bag that deploys to fill space between a vehicle occupant and the inflator when the gas emitted from the inflator is supplied to the air bag, the air bag having a plurality of sections that are formed independently of each other; and a sensor that detects whether the vehicle occupant wears a seat belt. In this air bag system, the control device changes an amount of the gas supplied from the inflator to each of the plurality of sections, depending upon a result of detection of the sensor. With the air bag system thus constructed, the air bag is able to vary its capability to restrain the vehicle occupant, depending upon whether the vehicle occupant is using the seat belt or not.
In one preferred form of the invention, an inner space of the air bag is divided by a partition wall into an upper section and a lower section. In this case, the control device controls the inflator so as to supply the gas to the upper section and the lower section when the result of detection of the sensor indicates that the vehicle occupant fails to wear the seat belt. With this arrangement, the upper and lower sections of the air bag are able to accurately and effectively restrain the head and chest of the vehicle occupant who is not using the seat belt.
In the above form of the invention, the control device may control the inflator so as to reduce an amount of gas supplied to the lower section when the result of detection of the sensor indicates that the vehicle occupant wears the seat belt, than an amount of gas supplied to the lower section when the result of detection of the sensor indicates that the vehicle occupant fails to wear the seat belt. With this arrangement, a reduced restraining force is applied to the chest of the vehicle occupant who is wearing the seat belt, which is less required to be restrained, and therefore the air bag system is able to restrain the vehicle occupant with improved efficiency.
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Dickson Paul N.
Draper Deanna
Mitsubishi Jidosha Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
Rossi & Associates
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