Land vehicles – Wheeled – Attachment
Patent
1998-07-14
2000-10-10
Mai, Lanna
Land vehicles
Wheeled
Attachment
2807283, B60R 2122
Patent
active
06129375&
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a device for protecting motor vehicle occupants.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Safety devices for protecting vehicle occupants in the event of side impact through the use of airbags are known. Thus from German Patent 43 07 421 A1 a safety device is known where an airbag is mounted between the hip of a person sitting on a vehicle seat and the door of the vehicle. The inflation device and the airbag are fixed on the vehicle seat so that the position of the airbag in relation to the occupant is not changed when adjusting the seat. This safety device protects in particular the hip area of the vehicle occupant.
Furthermore from German Patent 43 28 528 A1 a vehicle seat is known to which is connected an airbag-impact-protection unit to protect against a side impact of the vehicle. The inflated airbag of this protection unit lies between the head
eck part of the occupant and the immediate adjoining side structure of the vehicle, i.e. the airbag protects inter alia the upper body and the head of the vehicle occupant.
These devices have the drawback that the inflated airbags with which the vehicle occupant comes into direct contact are loaded by the occupant over a small surface since the vehicle occupant has a small surface in a lateral view.
This drawback can be overcome through a vehicle door which absorbs energy as known from German Patent 40 38 659 A1 . This vehicle door consists of an outer and inner panel which are fixed against each other. Between these is a space for attaching the window lifter and other component parts stored in the door. A door cover panel assembly attached to the inner panel contains a cover panel of a substantially rigid material. Between the inner panel and cover panel is an energy-absorbing crumple element. This element crumples in the event of side impact and thereby absorb the energy which arises. The cover panel has structurally weakened sections, preferably slits whereby the cover panel yields in a foreseen way in the event of side impact. In the event of side impact the vehicle occupant makes contact with the rigid cover panel so that the load of the occupant is spread out over a larger surface area.
The drawback with this vehicle door is that the door is very thick owing to the energy absorbing material additionally required so that the passenger space becomes reduced.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is, with a side impact protection device which uses an inflatable airbag, to spread out over a larger surface area of the airbag the load on the inflated airbag by the occupant in the event of side impact.
With a device for protecting vehicle occupants in the event of side impact using an inflatable airbag which is mounted behind a rigid movable trim part of a door or coachwork trim whereby the movable trim part is movable through the inflating airbag towards the vehicle occupant who is to be protected and wherein the movable trim part, during inflation and after inflation of the airbag, remains between this airbag and the vehicle occupant, according to the invention the movable airbag consists of several sections which are connected together for articulated movement and which can be brought from a rest position curved towards the folded airbag through the inflating airbag into an opposite position facing the vehicle occupant who is to be protected.
This device has the advantage that the inflatable airbag is to be stored as an energy-absorbing component in the non-inflated state in a conventional vehicle door or in a conventional vehicle coachwork part so that the inner space of the vehicle is not restricted. On the other hand the vehicle occupant in the event of side impact does not come into direct contact with the airbag but with the rigid trim part provided between him and the airbag. This causes the load of the occupant to be spread out over a larger surface area of the airbag than if a part of the body were to directly enter the airbag.
The articulated joints thereby run substantially parallel
REFERENCES:
patent: 4966388 (1990-10-01), Warner et al.
patent: 5048234 (1991-09-01), Lau et al.
patent: 5251931 (1993-10-01), Semchena et al.
patent: 5447326 (1995-09-01), Laske et al.
patent: 5738368 (1998-04-01), Hammond et al.
patent: 5931493 (1999-08-01), Sutherland
Patent Abstracts of Japan, vol. 018, No. 602 (M-1705), Nov. 16, 1994 & JP 06 227350 A (Toyota Motor Corp), Aug. 16, 1994.
Patent Abstracts of Japan, vol. 095, No. 008, Sep. 29, 1995 & JP 07 117610 A (Toyoda Gosei Co Ltd; Others: 01), May 9, 1995.
Jasmin Lynda
Mai Lanna
Petri AG
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